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Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

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FRENCH    GRAMMAR 
MADE  CLEAR 


BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR 


IN  FRENCH: 


La  Pensee  Religieuse  dans  i.'Angleterre  ContemporAine. 

Paris,  Lecoffre,  1933. 

Figures  de  Moineo  (crowned  by  the  French  Academy). 

Paris,  Perrin,  1908. 

Les  Soeurs  Bronte. 

Paris,  Bloud,  1910. 

Grammaire  Anglaise  Simplifiee. 

Paris,  de  Gigord,  1919. 

IN  ENGLISH: 

Paul  Bourget,  an  Essay  in  Literary  Biography. 

London,  Constable,  1911. 

France  Herself  Again. 

London,  Chatto  &  Windus;  New  York,  Putnam,  1914. 

The  March  to  Timbuctoo. 

London,  Chatto  &  Windus,  1915. 

The  Tendencies  of  French  Thought. 

Oxford  University  Press,  1916. 

Has  France  Gained  Anything  by  the  War.? 

(Lowell  Lectures,  1919)   almost  ready. 

Latin  Grammar  Made  Clear  (in  collaboration  with  Professor  H. 
Petitmangin  and  John  A.  Fitzgerald). 

Paris,  de  Gigord. 

France,  her  Neighbor  and  her  Problems  (six  lectures  at  the  Wil- 
liamstown  Institute  of  Politics. 

Yale  University  Press. 

From  a  Paris  Balcony. 

London,  Grant  Richards. 


IN  LATIN: 
Latine  de  Roman  is. 


Paris,  de  Gigord. 


FRENCH  GRAMMAR 
MADE  CLEAR 

FOR  USE 

IN  AMERICAN  SCHOOLS 

BY 

ERNEST  DIMNET 

Agrege  de  rUniversite 
Professor  at  College  Stanislas,  Paris 


FUNK  &  WAGNALLS  COMPANY 

NEW  YORK  AND  LONDON 


>!V 


Copyright,  1922,  by 
FUNK  &  WAGNALLS  COMPANY 

[Printed   in   the   United    States   of  America] 

Published  in  May,  1922 


Copynghi   Under  the  Articles  of  the   Copyright   Convention 

of  the  Pan-American   Republics   and  the 

United  States,  August   11,    1910 


10-24 


9o^ 

TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


Page 

Foreword    1 

This   grammar  written  for  students 1 

What  is  a  grammar  ? 2 

Characteristics  of  this  grammar 3 

The  French  Language  5 

Where  spoken   5 

What  it   is 6,7.8,9 

Whether  or  not  difficult  to  learn 9,10 

Its   vocabulary   10,11 

Its  pronunciation    11,12 

Where  spoken  the  best 12 

Advice  13 

About  learning  the  grammar 13,14,1 5 

How  to  learn  French  words 15,16,17 

How  to  think  in  French 17 

Alphabet    ^ 18 

Pronunciation    19 

Differences  between  French  and  English  pronunciation 19,20 

Pronunciation  of  French  vowels 20,21 

Pronunciation  of  French   diphthongs 21 

Pronunciation  of  nasal  sounds 21,22 

Pronunciation  of  consonants 22,23 

What  is  meant  by  liaison 23 

French  sounds  ill-pronounced  by  English-speaking  people.  .24,25 

Grammatical  Terms  26,27 

Articles  28 

Translation  of  the 28 

Elision  and  contraction 28,29 


697624 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


Page 

Distinction  of  genders  in  French 29,3^3 

Use  of  le,  la,  les 31 

Translation  of  a,  an 31 

Partitive  article  du,  de  la,  des 31,32 

Resume  of  rules  concerning  articles 32,33 

Nouns 34 

Feminine  of  nouns 34 

Modifications  beyond  the  addition  of  e 35 

Plurals  of  nouns 36 

Plurals  of  compound  nouns 36,37 

Plurals  of  proper  names 37 

Collective  nouns  ^7 

Resume  of  rules  for  nouns 37,38 

Adjectives   39 

Varieties  of  adj  ectives 39 

%       Adjectives  of  quality 39 

Feminine  of  adjectives 39,40,41 

Plurals  of  adjectives : 41,42 

Adjective  used  as  a  noun 42 

Place  of  adjectives 42,43,44 

Comparative  degree  of  adjectives 44 

Superlative  degree  of  adjectives 44 

Irregularities  in  comparative  and  superlative  of  adjectives..  45 

Agreement  of  adjectives 45 

Possessive  adjectives    46 

Agreement  of  son,  sa 47 

Demonstrative  adjectives    r 47 

Their  modifications    47,48 

Interrogative  adjectives    48 

Indefinite  adjectives   •  •  • 48 

Cardinal  numerals  49 

Their  formation 49.50 

Ordinal  numerals,  their  formation 50,51 

How  cardinal  numbers  are  used  in  French .51 

How  time  is  expressed  in  French 51,52 

Resume  of  rules  on  adjectives 52,53,54 

Pronouns 55 

Personal  pronouns  in  nominative 55 

Personal  pronouns  in  accusative 56 

Disjunctive  personal  pronouns 56,57 

Meaning  and  use  of  lui 57,58 

Meaning  and  use  of  leur 58 

VI 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


.•     Page 

Meaning  and  use  of  en 58 

Meaning  and  use  of  y 58 

Reflexive  pronouns 59 

Use  of  moi-meme,  etc 59,60 

Possessive  pronouns    60,61 

Possessive  pronouns  referring  to  several  people 61 

Translation  of  it  is  mine,  etc 62 

Meaning  of  celui  de 62 

Demonstrative  pronouns   : 62 

Meaning  and  use  of  celui-ci i . . .  * 62 

Meaning  and  use  of  celui  qui .- 63 

Meaning  and  use  of  ceci,  cela 63 

Meaning  and  use  oi  ce 63,64 

Meaning  and  use  of  ce  qui 64 

s/  Relative  pronouns    64,65 

Declension  of  relative  pronouns 66 

Interrogative   pronouns    66 

Interrogative  pronouns  used  in  speaking  of  persons 66,67 

In   other   oases 67 

Translation   of   what 67 

Translation  of  which 67 

Indefinite  pronouns  '. 68 

On  and  its  use 68 

Difference  between  personne  and  une  personne 69 

Meaning  of  plusieurs 69 

Meaning  and  use  of  rien 69 

Resume  of  rules  on  pronouns 70,71,72,73 

Verbs  74 

Plan  of  chapter 74 

Are  French  verbs  difficult? 74    *-'" 

Differences  between  French  and  English  verbs 74,75,76 

French   conjugations    76    ^ 

How  French  conjugations  are  simplified 77 

Best  method  of  learning  French  verbs 78 

Personal  endings  in  present  indicative 78,79 

Tense  endings  in  each  conjugation 80,81 

Exercises  on  verbs 81,82 

Formation    of  tenses 82 

Auxiliary  verbs  in  French 83,84 

Irregularities  in  conjugation  of  avoir 84 

Conjugation  of  avoir 84,85,86,87,88 

Compound  tenses  89 

Conjugation  of  etre 89,90,91,92,93 

The  four  conjugations 93 

Their  unequal  importance ,.,,..,.  .93,94, 

VII 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


Pact 

1.  Conjugation  of  aimer , .  .94,95,96,97,98 

What  is  noticeable  in  the  first  conjugation 9? 

Its  irregularities   98,9S 

_Ip:€gttlar  verbs^  in  er 99,10C 

2.  Conjugation  of  Twlr 100,101,102,103,1(>4 

Characteristics  of  the  second  conjugation 105 

Irregular  verbs  in  ir 105,106,107 

5:  Conjugation  of  recevoir 108,109,110,111,112 

Characteristics  of  the  third  conjugation 112 

Irregular  verbs  in  oir 113,114 

4.  Conjugatfori  of  rendre 115,116,117,118,119 

Classification  of  verbs  in  re 119,120 

Irregular  verbs  in  re 121,122,123,124 


Use  of  Tenses 124 

Infinitive    124,125 

Present  participle   -»f\ 125,126 

Past  participle  \/. 126 

Present  indicative  used  instead  of  past 127 

Present  indicative  used  instead  of  future 127 

Imperfect   127,128 

Simple  past  128,129 

Pluperfect    129,130 

Future   130,131 

Future  anterior 131 

Conditional    132,133 

Subjunctive 133,134,135,136,137 

What  tense  used  after  si 137,138 

Concord  of  tenses  in  subjunctive 138 

How  to  master  rules  concerning  subjunctive 139 

Interrogative  conjugation   139,140,141 

Negative  conjugation 142,143 

Resume  of  rules  on  the  use  of  tenses 143,144,145,146,147 


Classes  of  Verbs 147 

Passive    ft 148 

Intransitive 148,149 

Reflexive 150,151,152 

Impersonal 152,153 

Verb  y  avoir 153,154,155 

Verb  falloir 155,156 

Resume  of  rules  on  passive,  intransitive,  and  reflexive 
verbs   157,158 


^^ABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


Page 

Adverbs   1^9 

Adverbs  in  ment j59 

Adjectives  used  as  adverbs 159 

Mieux    J^ 

Comme  and  comment loO 

Position  of  adverbs  in  French 160 

List  of  adverbs  of  quality,  time,  place,  manner,  etc.  160,161,162,163 

Done   J63 

Si  and  oui 163 

Prepositions  164,165 

Conjunctions 166,167,168,169 

Exclamations 170,171,172,173 

Gallicisms  176 

Referring  to  definite  article 176,177 

Referring  to  indefinite   article   177 

Referring  to  partitive  article    177,178 

Referring  to  noun 178 

Referring  to  adjective    178,179,180 

Referring  to  pronoun    180 

Referring  to  personal  pronoun    180,181,182,183 

Repetition   of  pronouns 183 

Le,  la,  les  as  pronouns 184 

En 184,185 

Demonstrative  pronouns  185,186 

Relative  pronouns  186,187 

Indefinite  pronouns    187,188 

Referring  to  verb 188 

Inversion   of  subject 188,189 

Agreement  of  subjects  with  verbs 189,190 

Use  of  tenses 190 

Use  of  indicative 190 

Use  of  conditional 190,191 

Use  of  present  participle  191 

Use  of  infinitive    ;••••.•. 191,192 

Prepositions  before  an  infinitive 192 

Prepositions   suppressed    193,194 

To  translated  by  a 193,194 

To  translated  by  pour 194 

To  translated  by  de 194,195,196 

Remarks  on  a  few  verbs 196 

Remarks  on  faire 196,197,198 

IX 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


Page 

Remarks  on  alter 198,199 

Remarks  on  vouloir 199,200 

Adverb    200 

A  peine  si 200 

Combien  200,201 

D'oti,   201 

Encore   201 

Pas  201,202 

Peu  202 

Par  ou  202 

Pres    202 

Preposition 2Q2 

A  202,203 

Dans,  en 204,205 

De  205,206 

Jusqu'a   206 

Par    207 

Conjunctions    208 

Ne    208,209 

Que  208,209,210 

Quelque    210 

Suppression  of  conjunctions 210 

Frequent  Mistakes   * .211,212,213,214 

Current  Twentieth  Century  Phrases 216,217,218,219,220,221 

Appendices  223 

1.  French  Versification 225 

2.  Main  periods  of  French  History 229 

3.  Landmarks  of  French  Literature 232 

4.  Measures,  Weights,  Coins 237 

5.  Polite  formulas — Letter  Writing 238 

6.  Advice  on  Translating 240 

7.  Bibliography    • 241 


FRENCH    GRAMMAR 
MADE  CLEAR 


FOREWORD 


TO  THE  STUDENT 


This  book  was  written  for  you^not  for  your  teacher 
who  has  a  large  Hbrary  of  learned  works,  but  for  you. 
Every  word  of  it  was  chosen,  every  typographical  arrange- 
ment devised  for  you.  You  will  notice  that  although  in 
most  cases  examples  are  given  first  in  English  with  the 
French  translation  after,  the  contrary  order  occasionally 
appears.  This  is  not  the  result  of  arbitrariness  but  of  the 
consideration  of  what  you  will  sometimes  prefer.  Your 
needs  were  considered  in  everything. 

Some  people  contend  that  we  can  learn  a  language 
without  learning  the  grammar  of  that  language :  they  even 
say  that  we  learn  it  better  that  way.  In  fact,  there  is  no 
doubt  that  the  quickest  method  for  leatning  a  language  is 
to  speak  it  with  people  who  know  it  well,  and  the  next 
quickest  is  to  read  good  books  written  in  that  language. 
But  you  certainly  know,  in  your  own  school,  boys  or  girls 
who  have  learned  French  in  Europe  or  with  a  French 
governess  and  who,  nevertheless,  surprise  their  teacher  by 
their  mistakes  in  speaking.  And  you  probably  know  people 
who  read  French  as  easily  as  English  but  cannot  write  six 
lines  in  French  correctly.    Ask  a   few  questions  and  you 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


will  invariably  find  that  these  people  have  never  studied  a 
French  grammar  and  are  ready  to  admit  that  their  hesi- 
tations have  no  other  cause  than  their  ignorance  of  the 
grammar. 

Nobody  knov^s,  really  know^s,  a  language,  v^^ithout 
knov^ring  the  grammar  of  that  language. 

But  what  is  a  grammar?  Is  it  the  work  of  a  legislator 
we  have  to  obey  implicitly?  Is  it  a  collection  of  formulas 
so  final  that  they  cannot  be  altered  in  one  syllable  and  must 
be  remembered  as  they  are  or  not  at  all? 

Some  people  imagine  this,  and  it  goes  a  long  way 
towards  explaining  their  antagonism  to  grammars. 

But  grammars  are  neither  codes  nor  formulas :  they  are 
merely  the  explanation  of  certain  ways  of  speaking.  When 
a  person  asks  another :  what  is  "five  hundred"  in  French  ? 
— ''Cinq  cents'' —  And  what  is  *'five  hundred  and  ten"? — 
'■'Cinq  cent  dix" ;  if  the  person  who  knows  French  better 
points  out  to  the  other  that  cent  takes  an  s  in  the  plural 
when  there  is  no  other  figure  after  it,  but  does  not  take  the 
s  if  it  is  followed  by  another  figure,  a  grammatical  rule  is 
given  in  simple  but  excellent  language.  A  grammar  is  mere- 
ly a  collection  of  such  explanations :  it  is  the  description 
of  a  language  from  well-chosen  examples. 

This  will  explain  to  you  why  this  grammar  consists 
of  questions  and  answers  like  the  conversation  mentioned 
above,  why  the  technical  language  of  grammarians  is  as 
much  as  possible  avoided  in  it,  and  why  examples  are  of 
such  capital  importance  in  its  composition.  You  are  not 
expected  to  remember  verbatim  any  rules:  you  are  ex- 
pected to  understand  the  difference  between  two  ways  of 
phrasing,  in  English  and  in  French,  and  the  best  manner 
in  which  you  can  show  that  you  have  understood  this 
difference  is  to  invent  an  example  of  your  own  in  imitation 
of  the  one  given  in  the  grammar. 


FRENCH    GRAMMAR   MADE   CLEAR 


A  grammar  is  nothing  if  it  is  not  helpful :  it  must  be 
short  enough  to  leave  plenty  of  time  for  reading  and  con- 
versation in  class,  but  it  must  be  complete  enough  not  to 
omit  anything,  the  absence  of  which  might  cause  embar- 
rassment, astonishment,  or  ultimately  anxiety.  The  tendency 
in  the  composition  of  "French  Grammar  Made  Clear"  has 
been  to  leave  out  rather  than  crowd  in.  The  author  set 
himself  a  rule  to  which  he  has  throug^hout  adhered :  adtnit 
nothing  that  may  unduly  complicate  and  leave  out  all  that 
is  not  generally  known  to  an  educated  Frenchman.  Why 
burden  the  memory  of  an  American  boy  or  girl  with  niceties 
which  even  a  French  writer  may  not  know? 

Altogether  you  will  soon  realize  that  this  book  has 
been  composed  to  enlighten,  not  dazzle  you.  It  aims  at 
being  your  friend  as  much  as  your  own  teacher  is :  the 
advice  it  gfves,  its  efforts  to  be  clear  to  the  eye  as  well  as 
to  the  mind,  its  anxiety  to  make  use  of  what  you  are  sure 
to  know  already  in  order  to  lead  you  on  to  what  may  be 
new  to  you  (see  treatment  of  the  subjunctive,  page  133), 
its  decided  optimism,  are  only  aspects  of  the  friendly  atti- 
tude natural  to  one  who  has  guided  pupils  and  rejoiced  in 
their  progress  all  his  life. 

ERNEST   DIM  NET. 


THE  FRENCH  LANGUAGE 


1.  Where  is  the  French  language  spoken? 

a)  Throughout  France,  though  species  of  patois  sur- 
vive in  most  of  the  country  districts,  while  Flemish, 
Breton,  Alsatian,  Corsican,  or  Basque  are  spoken 
by  about  two  million  people;  in  the  south-eastern 
half  of  Belgium ;  in  the  western  cantons  of  Switzer- 
land ;  and  in  a  few  Alpine  valleys,  such  as  the  Val- 
lee  d'Aoste,  which  are  now  Italian  territories; 

b)  in  the  French  colonies  of  Algeria,  Tunis,  Morocco, 
Central  Africa,  Indo-China,  Martinique,  etc.,  and  in 
former  French  possessions  (the  Channel  islands, 
Eastern  Canada,  Mauritius,  Louisiana)  which  have 
retained  a  strong  French  element; 

c)  in  numerous  communities,  especially  in  the  Levant 
and  in  Egypt,  where  French  school's  have  \ou^ 
been  in  existence; 

d)  finally,  French,  in  the  seventeenth  century,  became 
the  almost  exclusive  medium  of  science,  philoso- 
phy, and  diplomacy ;  and  although  English  in  many 
cases  and  German  in  others  tended  to  supersede 
it  during  the  latter  part  of  the  nineteenth  century, 
it  IS  still  used  in  numerous  publications  outside  of 
France  and  is  the  common  language  of  diplomat- 
ists: all   the  great   international   agreements   are 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


drawn  up  in  French,  even  when  France  happens 
not  to  be  a  signatory  to  them.  Hence  the  importance 
given  to  the  knowledge  of  French  in  distinguished 
or  learned  circl'es  the  world  over. 

2.  What  is  the  French  language? 

A  glance  at  a  French  text  will  tell  any  one  with 
a  knowledge  of  Latin  that  the  French  language, 
as  well  as  Italian  or  Spanish,  is  a  derivative  of 
Latin :  ninety-nine  in  a  hundred  French  words  are 
of  Latin  origin.  How  this  transformation  took 
place,  history  tells  us  very  clearly.  When,  in  50 
B.C.,  Julius  Caesar  conquered  the  country  which 
was  to  be  called  France,  this  territory  was  inhabit- 
ed by  communities  of  Gauls,  established  at  favor- 
able points  along  the  larger  rivers,  and  separated, 
the  one  from  the  other,  by  thick  woodlands.  In 
most  of  the  cities  which  had  so  developed,  the 
Romans  kept  garrisons  and  gradually  disseminated 
their  civilization  in  the  course  of  four  and  a  half 
centuries  during  which  they  held  possession.  When 
the  invasions  of  the  Franks  (fifth  century  of  the 
Christian  era)  compelled  them  to  make  way  for 
the  new-comers,  the  presence  of  the  Roman  armies, 
magistrates,  schools,  and  shops,  as  well  as  frequent 
inter-marriages,  had  made  Gaul  as  completely  Latin 
as  Mexico,  originally  Indian,  had  become  Spanish 
when  Spain  had  to  renounce  her  rights  there.  Ex- 
cept in  a  few  out-of-the-way  districts  where  the 
Gallic  language  (akin  to  Gaelic)  was  still  spoken, 
the  Gauls  had  wholly  forgotten  their  own  dialects 
and   spoke  only  Latin. 

Was  this  Latin  exactly  similar  to  the  language 
with  which  the  works  of  Cicero  and  Virgil  have 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


made  us  familiar?  No,  it  was  as  different  from  it 
as  American  slang  is  different  from  the  English 
of  Lincoln.  Even  in  Rome  there  were  two  varie- 
ties of  Latin :  one  used  by  cultivated  people  who 
called  a  horse  equns  and  a  house  domus,  the  other 
spoken  by  the  lower  clas'ses  who  replaced  these 
words  by  cahallns  and  mansio.  The  Latin  language 
used  by  the  Roman  armies  (sermo  castrensis)  was 
this  inferior  Latin,  made  even  more  different  from 
classical  Latin  by  the  miscellaneous  origin  of  the 
men  who  spoke  it.  The  Roman  legions,  as  k  well 
known,  were  largely  recruited  from  barbarous  tribes 
speaking  various  languages ;  necessity  compelled 
these  soldiers  to  adopt  the  language  of  their  Ro- 
man comrades,  (that  is  to  say,  the  low  Latin  des- 
cribed above),  but  they  seldom  spoke  it  as  Italian- 
born  men  did.  Some  of  them  could  not  pronounce 
an  R^  others  could,  not  pronounce  a  G,  many  sound- 
ed a  d  like  a  t,  many  others  could  not  distinguish 
a  B  from  a  v,  while  nearly  all  of  them  were  utterly 
ignorant  of  the  delicate  rules  of  Roman  prosody 
and  accented  wrongly  all  but  the  simplest  words. 
This  was  the  kind  of  Latin  which  the  majority  of 
Gallo-Romans — as  Romanized  Gauls  were  called 
— had  a  chance  to  learn. 

The  Franks  were  not  numerous — only  abojit 
30,000 — and  they  were  far  from  being  superior  in 
civiljizaition  to  the  people  whom  they  were  ap- 
parently dominating;  in  a  generation  or  two  they 
forgot  their  own  Teutonic  tongue  and  began  to 
speak  the  language  of  the  Gallo-Romans  with 
hardly  any  modifications.  However,  the  depar- 
ture of  the  Romans  left  these  ancestors  of  the 
French  without  a  standard  of  language,  and  hence- 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


forth  Latin  was  treated  with  as  little  reg-ard  for 
purity  as  English  may  be  in  a  factory  full  of  un- 
americanized  foreigners  coming  from  half  a  dozen 
different  countries.  The  niceties  of  Latin  declen- 
sions and  conjugations  were  forgotten ;  consonants 
were  interchanged  in  an  apparently  extraordinary 
manner  (cf.  "y^P"  ^^^  y^s),  many  were  suppressed 
(cf.  "goo'bye"  for  good-bye,  "twenny"  for  twen- 
ty) ;  the  vowels,  being  more  delicate,  passed  through 
even  worse  deformations  (cf. girl  pronounced "goil," 
American  pronounced  *'Amarican"  or  "Amurrican," 
"room"  pronounced  in  the  South  of  the  United 
States,  as  in  the  South  of  England,  as  if  oo  were  a 
French  u,  etc.,  etc.) ;  above  all,  the  accented  sylla- 
ble in  every  word  tended  to  weaken  or  even  to  kill 
its  neighbors  (cf.  "d'you  'member"  for  "do  you 
remember,''  and  the  suppressions  frequent  in  Eng- 
lish versification.) 

In  the  case  of  the  Gallo-Romans,  having  no  stan- 
dard authorities  to  correct  the  popular  faults  and 
corruptions  of  speech,  the  results  were:  1),  a  short- 
ening of  Latin  words,  due  to  the  incapacity  of  un- 
trained ears  to  perceive  clearly  any  except  the  ac- 
cented syllables  (bonitatem,  for  instance,  became 
hontat,  and  gradually  honta  and  bonte)  ;  2),  a  trans- 
formation of  vowels  into  very  different  sounds 
varying  with  the  districts  and  giving  rise  to  nu- 
merous! dialects  (for  instance,  regem  became 
''roi/'  whilch  'even  now  is  pronounced  "rwcx" 
within  a  few  miles  of  Paris,  while  in  Italian  it  is 
RE,  in  Spanish  rey). 

These  transformations  were  quick  and  multitu- 
dinous during  the  stage  of  the  language  known  as 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE   CLEAR 


Old  French  (from  the  beg^innlng  of  the  ninth  to 
the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century).  There  was  no 
standard  of  spelHng  or  speaking,  and  the  innum- 
erable dialects  were  supposed  to  be  one  as  good  as 
the  other.  However,  as  the  King,  from  his  rather 
precarious  position  as  mere  lord  of  the  Ile-de- 
France  (the  province  roundabout  Paris),  slowly 
rose  to  superior  authority,  the  language  spoken  by 
him  and  his  court  began  to  be  regarded  as  the 
language  of  culture  and  fashion,  and  the  other  dia- 
lects .fell  to  the  lower  rank  of  patois."^  The  craving 
of  writers  to  be  known  and  appreciated  at  court 
naturally  worked  in  the  sam.e  direction  and  when 
at  last  printing  was  invented,  the  Parisian  language 
had  for  two  hundred  years  been  acknowledged  as 
the  standard  of  polished  French.  The  frequent  re- 
currence in  it  of  mute  e's,  lending  fullness  and  vi- 
bration to  the  preceding  syllable,  of  softened  ll's 
as  in  fille  and  ecaille,  and  of  the  so-called  nasal 
sounds  (in,  on,  an,  un),  gave  it  a  fluid  quality 
and  a  harmony  which  the  tap-tap  of  the  langue  d'oc 
or  Southern  French  can  never  possess. 

3.  Is  French  a  difficult  language  for  English-speaking 
people  to  learn? 

No  language  has  so  simple  a  grammar  as  English, 
and  the  consequence  is  that  English-speaking  peo- 
ple have  a  tendency  to  look  upon  the  grammars  of 
other  languages  as  complicated.  It  is  a  fact  that 
while  English  nouns  denoting  things  are  uniformly 
neuter,  they  are  masculine  or  feminine  in  French; 


*  The  Norman  French  spoken  by  the  English  Kings  and  by  the  majority 
of  cul'ivated  English  people  during  the  centuries  immediately  following  the 
ro   (luest    by    William    the    Conqueror    was    substantially    the    same    as    Parisian 

Heard, 


10  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

the  adjective,  too,  which  in  EngHsh  is  undeclined, 
follows  in  French  the  gender  of  its  accompanying 
noun  and  varies  again  as  the  noun  is  singular  or 
plural;  pronouns  change  in  the  same  manner. 
Above  all,  by  contrast  to  the  simplicity  of  the 
English  verb,  French  conjugations  seem  puzzling, 
and  the  irregular  verbs  are  supposed  to  tax  one's 
attention  and  memory  in  an  extraordinary  degree. 

There  is  truth  here.  But  there  is  no  less  truth 
in  the  fact  that  hundreds  and  thousands  of  Ameri- 
cans, especially  women,  sj>eak  French  to  perfection, 
and  many  more  who  have  never  made  sufficient 
effort  to  master  the  spoken  language  read  French 
books  as  if  they  were  in  their  own  tongue.  A  few 
simple  rules  and  a  little  practise  (by  speaking  and 
through  reading  very  easy  books)  rob  the  French 
genders  of  their  apparent  difficulty,  and  the  rules 
concerning  the  adjectives  and  pronouns  become 
clear  in  consequence.  Finally,  it  is  doubtful  whether 
the  French  conjugations  would  frighten  any  one 
if  the  irregular  verbs — comparatively  very  few  in 
number — were  not  so  constantly  described  as  a 
nightmare,  which,  in  simple  truth,  they  are  not. 
A  little  method  and  moderate  attention  will  show 
uniformity  where  there  is  supposed  to  be "  sucli 
disheartening  diversity,  but  the  method  is  all  im- 
portant: the  first  half  hour  spent  over  the  French 
verbs  ought  to  reassure  the  student  for  ever. 

4.  Is  the  French  vocabulary  a  great  difficulty? 

Some  people  imagine  so,  but  they  are  mistaken. 
Seventy  per  cent,  of  the  English  vocabulary  is 
French  in  origin.    Several  thousand  French  words 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE   CLEAR 


(for  instance,  some  twelve  hundred  endinof  in  ticn 
like  application,  nation,  ration)  are  exactly  similar 
to  the  English  words  which  they  translate,  while 
some  ten  thousand  more  (as  exigence  for  exigency, 
papier  for  paper)  are  so  like  their  English  coun- 
terparts that  they  are  unmistakable.  It  can  be  said 
that  any  one  who  knows  English  knows  some  fif- 
teen thousand  French  words  before  having  con- 
sciously learned  any  French  at  all,  and  this  ac- 
counts for  so  rpany  people  being  able  to  guess  at 
the  meaning  of  a  French  newspaper  without  really 
knowing  the  language. 

5.  Is  French  difficult  to  pronounce? 

Yes,  for  people  who  do  not  try  or  who  foolishly 
imagine  that  they  would  appear  ridiculous  if  they 
did  try.  Many  people,  supposed  to  enjoy  exceptional 
opportunities  for  learning  the  French  pronuncia- 
tion, go  on  sounding  foreign  to  the  end  of  their 
lives  because  they  make  no  effort  of  the  sort  re- 
quired; others  improve  with  astonishing  rapidity 
because  they  realize  that  you  no  more  learn  how 
to  pronounce  a  language  merely  by  listening  to,  or 
even  by  living  with,  people  who  speak  it  than  you 
learn  to  sing  by  going  to  the  opera  without  ever 
practising  singing.  The  only  method  is  to  copy  or 
even  mimic  the  intonation  and  sounds, — in  a  word, 
the  placing  of  the  French  voice.  Progress  will  be 
,  in  keeping  with  the  effort  so  made. 

The  student  ought  to  aim,  from  the  very  first 
lesson,  at  a  correct  pronunciation  of  the  French  r — 
the  real  key  to  proper  placing  of  the  vocal  organs 
— of  the  nasal  sounds  in,  on,  an,  un,  and  of  the 


12  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

sounds  represented  by  u,  au,  and  eu.  The  moment 
these  are  secured — and  with  some  pupils  it  only 
takes  half  an  hour  to  gain  them — other  details 
become  easy. 

6.  Where  is  the  best  French  spoken? 

The  French  have  an  inborn  taste  for  elegant 
language,  and)  improve  every  opportunity  they  have 
of  acquiring  distinction  in  speech.  It  is  not  rare  to 
see  servants  acquire  their  Employers*  pronunciation 
apparently  without  any  effort.  Provincialism  in 
•  accent  or  choice   of   words   seldom  escapes  being 

laughed  out  of  a  young  man  during  his  military 
service.  The  consequence  is  that  a  large  proportion 
of  French  people  speak  well.  In  Paris  most  people 
have  a  good  accent,  and  practically  every  child 
brought  up  there  has  a  refined  pronunciation.  One 
.may  safely  say  that,  apart  from  the  South,  where 
the  language  is  pure  but  the  pronunciation  is  pe- 
culiar, a  foreigner  has  no  difficulty  in  finding  in 
every  town,  but  above  all  in  Paris,  models  of  the 
very  best  speech.  The  difference  in  this  respect 
between  French  and  English-speaking  countries  is 
striking. 


ADVICE 


What  18  the  best  method  to  adopt  in  learning  the 
grammar? 

The  less  you  look  at  your  book  while  learning, 
that  is  to  say,  the  more  you  compel  your  memory 
to  work  without  the  help  of  your  eyes,  the  more 
easily  you  learn.  One  may  read  with  one's  eyes, 
and,  worst  of  all,  with  one's  lips — a  silly  habit — 
without  paying  any  real  attention  to  one's  book 
and  indeed  while  thinking  of  something  else  all  the 
time. 

You  learn  best  by  trying  to  understand  thorough- 
ly. A  grammatical  rule  is  not  a  regulation  or  an 
•  article  from  a  code;  it  is  the  explanation  of  a  way 
of  speaking,  and  this  explanation  consists  merely  in 
pointing  out  the  difference  between  the  language 
you  are  learning  and  your  own.  Take  an  English 
sentence  and  its  French  translation — for  example, 
Think  before  speaking'" — reflechissez  avant  de 
parler — and  examine  both  as  carefully  as  you 
would  scan  a  new  typewriter  or  a  new  dress  pat- 
tern. You  will  soon  see  that  French  uses  the  in- 
finitive where  English  uses  the  present  participle 
and  you  will  have  no  difficulty  in  remembering  the 
rule,  viz.,  after  prepositions  which  in  English 

TAKE  the   present   PARTICIPLE.    THE    FrENCH    LAN- 


14 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


GUAGE  USES  THE  INFINITIVE.  The  all-importaiit 
thing  is  never  to  make  an  attempt  at  remembering 
the  rule,  for  examination  purposes,  before  thor- 
oughly understanding  the  example  given.  Some 
teachers  wisely  insist  on  the  pupil's  using  in  class  an 
example  of  his  own  making  instead  of  that  given 
in  the  book,  because  this  compels  the  student  to 
understand  instead  of  just  merely  remembering. 

Not  everything  in  French  grammar  is  as  simple 
as  the  use  of  the  infinitive  after  prepositions.  You 
may  be  set  a  more  complicated  lesson,  for  instance, 
the  differences  and  similarities  between  the  various 
groups  of  verbs  in  the  present  indicative : 


Aimer 

FiNIR 

Recevoir 

Rendre 

J'aime 

Je  finis 

Je  regois 

Je  rends 

Til  aimes 

Tu  finis 

Tu  regois 

Tu  rends 

B  aime 

II  fmit 

II  regoit 

11  rend 

Nous  aimons 

NousHnissons 

Nous  reccvons 

Nous  r'endons 

Vous  aimc:^ 

Vans  Unissez 

VoMs  recevez 

Vous  rendez 

lis  aiment 

lis  finis  sent 

lis  regoivent 

lis  rendent 

You  will  be  frightened  at  first — less  by  the  thing 
itself  than  by  what  you  have  heard  of  the  diffi- 
culty of  French  verbs — but  the  moment  you  really 
examine  the  four  models  above  — examine  them 
as  if  they  were  four  types  of  fountain  pen — you 
will  find  with  great  satisfaction,  1 )  that  the  endings 
ONS,  EZ,  and  ent  are  everywhere  the  same  in  the  plu- 
ral; 2)  that  finir,  recei^oir,  and  rendre  coincide  even 
in  the  singular;  and  3)  that,  after  all,  aimer  differs 
from  the  others  only  in  the  first  and  third  person? 
singular,  which  therefore  are  alone  to  be  remem- 
bered,   as    exceptions.     These    three     statements 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  15 

make   up  the  rule  you  are  expected  to  find   for 
yourself. 

The  moment  you  see  such  a  rule  clearly,  shut 
your  book  and  mentally  rehearse  the  whole  thing 
till  you  feel  sure  it  cannot  slip  out  of  your  mem- 
ory. This  practise  will  not  only  teach  you  the 
French  grammar  and  the  French  language,  but 
will  also  teach  you  concentration.  It  will  strength- 
en your  memory  and,  if  you  try  to  state  what 
you  have  just  learned  logically,  clearly,  and  in  neat, 
accurate  terms,  it  will  teach  you  to  think  clearly 
and  explain  lucidly,  which,  after  all.  is  the  main 
object  of  education. 

2.  Is  it  advisable  to  learn  French  words  systematically? 

It  is  astonishing  that  some  people  should  serious- 
ly ask  such  a  question.  Anybody  who  really  wishes 
or  need:3  to  master  a  language  learns  words  all 
the  tjime.  Read  John  Stuart  MilKs  fascinating 
Autobiography:  you  will  see  how  as  a  very  little 
boy  he  used  constantly  to  note  on  cards  the  Greek 
words  which  his  father  taught  him  because  there 
were  at  the  time  only  Greek-Latin  dictionaries  and 
^  the  child  had  been  started  on  Greek  before  be- 
ginning Latin.  The  results  were  marvelous.  Also 
people  living  in  a  foreign  country  have  new  words 
forced  into  their  memory  at  every  turn.  One 
should  strive  to  remember  each  word  as  if  its 
meaning  were  never  to  be  revealed  to  one  again. 

In  fact  nothing  is  easier  than  masitering  the 
vocabulary.  It  does  not  take  five  minutes  to 
LEARN  TEN  FRENCH  WORDS,  and  if  you  learn  ten 
words  a  day,  in  two  years  you  will  know  nearly 


16  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

eight  thousand,  an  enormous  supply.  The  secret 
is  to  learn  the  ten  words  every  day  and  at  the 
same  hour. 

3.  How  does  one  learn  French  words? 

By  looking  intently,  instead  of  merely  glancing, 
at  them,  by  repeating  them,  and  by  joining  them 
to  other  words.  Words  can  not  be  learned  simply 
by  being  glanced  at  in  a  dictionary  or  casually 
heard  in  class.  Like  everything  else  they  only 
become  familiar  upon  long  acquaintance.  When 
you  find  in  an  exercise  an  English  word  the  French 
equivalent  of  which  is  unknown  to  you,  naturally 
you  look  it  up.  While  it  stands  there  before  you, 
examine  it  a  few  moments,  take  in  its  physiognomy, 
listen  to  its  sound,  imagine  the  object  it  represents, 
think  of  its  opposite,  above  all,  insert  it  in  a  sen- 
sible sentence,  and  when  this  has  been  done  write 
it  down  in  a  note-book  kept  at  hand  for  the  purpose. 
Do  the  same  when  you  read  a  French  text:  dwell 
on  every  word  you  do  not  know,  instead  of  just 
skimming  over  it.  In  this  way,  a  valuable  habit  will 
soon  be  formed :  some  students  show  a  surprising 
capacity  for  remembering  long  lists  of  new  words. 

You  will  find  that  four  words  which  help  one 
another  because  their  combination  has  some  mean- 
ing can  be  remembered  more  easily  than  two  which 
have  no  connection.  Feu,  charbon,  chaudiere, 
chauffeur,  will  stay  in  your  memory  if  you  think 
of  the  locomotive  while  learning  them  and  if  you 
put  them  together  in  some  such  sentence  as  "le 
chauffeur  met  du  charbon  sur  le  feu  de  la  chau- 
diere" 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  17 

You  will  remember  words  better  by  translating^ 
from  English  into  French  than  by  doing  the  reverse. 
Nothing  will  teach  you  words  so  infallibly  as  writ- 
ing down  in  French  what  another  person  is  dicta- 
ting very  slowly  in  English,  and,  immediately  after- 
wards, having  your  mistakes  pointed  out  to  you. 
Observe  that  when  you  speak  French  you  are  trans- 
lating from  English.  Merely  guessing  or  remem- 
bering the  meaning  of  a  French  word  is  not  enough ; 
what  is  necessary  is  to  be  able  to  find  the  French 
word  when  you  are  given  its  English  equivalent. 

4.  How  does  one  learn  to  think  in  French? 

This  may  very  easily  be  done  by  rewriting  rapidly 
or  summing  up  out  loud  a  French  passage  one  has 
just  read.  One  should  never  construe  more  than 
ten  lines  without  stopping,  reading  the  passage  over 
again,  and  repeating  it  in  French,  not  verbatim  but 
fluently  and  freely,  thinking  more  of  the  words 
than  of  their  syntax,  which  need  not  be  correct  at 
first. 

People  who  know  many  languages  generally  learn 
them  in  that  way,  without  any  professors.  The 
more  words  and  languages  you  know,  the  more 
easily  you  learn  others.  Memory  is  not  a  box 
which  must  in  time  get  filled  up ;  it  is  a  habit  which, 
like  a  muscle,  is  strengthened  by  daily  use. 


ALPHABET 

Letters : 

Pronounced 

Letters : 

Pronounced 

A 

a    (in  father) 

.  N 

enn 

B 

be 

O 

0 

C 

ce 

P 

pe 

D 

de 

iQ 

kU 

E 

e 

J,R 

air 

F 

eji 

JS 

ess 

G 

dj 

T 

te 

^H 

ash 

U 

u 

I 

ee 

V 

ve 

J 

jee 

w 

double  ve 

K 

kah 

X 

eex 

L 

ell 

Y 

i  grec 

.M 

emm 

z 

zed 

Note. 


1.  Learn  at  once  to  give  French  letters  their  French 
name. 

2.  F,  H,  L,  M,  N^  R,  s^  are  feminine;  ex.:  une  f;  une  s; 
but  many  educated  French  people  say  un  of  all 
letters. 

Accents  : 

There,  are  three  accents : 
^     acute  accent.    Ex. :  e'peler, 
^     grave  accent.    Ex. :  a,  ires, 
/v     circumflex  accent.    Ex. :  pate,  tete, 
cote,  flute. 


The  acute  accent  is  pronounced  with  the  lips  hardly 
opened ;  the  grave  accent  with  the  lips  moderately 
opened ;   the  circumflex  with  the  lips  wide  open. 


PRONUNCIATION 


What  differences  are  there  between  the  pronun- 
ciation of  English  and  the  pronunciation  of 
French? 

a)  French  is  substantially  pronounced  as  it  is 
WRITTEN,  whereas  vowel  sounds  in  English  vary 
from  one  word  to  another.  Why  the  sound  of  the 
final  A  in  the  English  word  naval  should  differ 
from  the  first,  and  why  both  a's  in  this  word  should 
not  sound  like  a  in  hat  is  puzzling  to  foreigners. 

b)  French  words  can  be  said  to  have  no  accented 
SYLLABLES  although  the  last  syllable  is  slightly  em- 
phasized: each  syllable  stands  out  clearly  and  in- 
dependently from  its  neighbors.  For  instance,  the 
word  STRATAGEME,  which  an  English-speaking  per- 
son naturally  pronounces  strat'  agem  is  pronounced 
in  Vvonoh  stra-ta- geme,  and  the  three  syllables 
have  the  same  value  (exactly  as  **one,  two,  three"  is 
pronounced  without  any  emphasis  on  any  of  the 
three  numbers.) 

c)  The  French  always  divide  their  words  by  rest- 
ing THE  VOICE  ON  A  VOWEL;  for  instance  strata- 
GEME  is  pronounced  stra-ta-geme  and  monastere 
is  pronounced  mo-na-stere.  The  stressed  syllables  of 
the  same  words  in  English  are  divided  after  conson- 
ants   (  strat'- A-GEM  ;   mon'-as-tery).     The  conse- 


20  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

quence  is  important.  We  are  tempted  and  practically 
compelled  in  English  to  give  prominence  to  con- 
sonants, even  to  the  extent  of  making  them  sound 
as  though  they  were  double  (stratt'agcm,  monn'as- 
tery),  and  this  imparts  inevitable  harshness  to  the 
pronunciation.  The  French  use  their  teeth  less 
and  their  lips  more  in  speaking;  t  in  the  is  much 
softer  than  in  tea. 

d)  Long  vowels  in  French  are  slightly  less  long 
THAN  in  English  and  short  vowels  are  deci- 
dedly longer.  For  instance,  a  in  the  French  word 
baton  is  slightly  shorter  than  a  in  hark  (long  a), 
but  the  same  vowel  in  the  French  word  rat  is 
appreciably  longer  than  in  the  English  word  rat;  i 
in  the  French  word  six  is  shorter  than  ea  in  cease 
and  longer  than  i  in  the  English  word  six. 

2.  What  is  the  pronunciation  of  French  voweb? 

A.  A  sounds  like  a  in  father;  ex. :  fahle. 
a  sounds  like  a  in  bar ;  ex. :  bdtir. 

E.    E  without  any  accent  is  mute  at  the  end  of  a  word, 
as  in  English ;    ex. :  page;   elsewhere  it  sounds  like 
the  first  e  in  veneer;  ex. :  venir. 
E  sounds  like  ay  in  bay,  but  shorter  and  clear. 
ex. :  benir. 

E  sounds  like  e  in  perish^  but  a  trifle  longer ;  ex. : 
pere. 
E  has  the  same  sound  but  longer  again ;  ex. :  tete. 

I.  I  has  the  sound  of  ee  in  feet,  but  shorter ;  ex. :  midi; 
i  now-a-days  is  hardly  longer  than  i. 

O.  o  sounds  like  the  o  in  botany;  ex. :  poli;  before  an 
r  it  sounds  like  oa  in  roar;    ex. :    aurore; 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  21 

6  sounds  like  o  in  total,  but  decidedly  longer ;  ex. : 
oter. 

U.  u  and  u  now-a-days  have  the  same  sound;  this 
sound  is  very  like  oo  as  pronounced  in  Louisiana 
(moon^^miin)   but  clearer;  ex.:  mur,  or  mur. 

3.  How  are  French  diphthongs  pronounced? 

French  diphthongs  can  be  divided  between  compound 
vowels  and  true  diphthongs. 

Compound  vowels  are  pronounced  like  single 
vowels : 

Ai  is  pronounced  sometimes  like  e  ;  ex. :  fai;  some- 
times like  E ;  ex. :   z/rai; 

Au  or  EAu  is  pronounced  like  6 ;  ex. :  haut,  bateau. 
EU  is  pronounced  like  e   in  err  but  longer ;  ex. : 
heuretix. 
ou  is  pronounced  like  a  short-oo ;  €x. :  cou. 

Real  diphthongs  are: 
AIL  pronounced  like  eye  ;  ex. :  taille. 
EiL  pronounced  very  nearly  as  ay  is  pronounced 
by  English  singers ;  ex. :  veille. 
I    <^  pronounced  like  wah  but  shorter ;  ex. :  roi. 
OE  pronounced  in  the  same  manner  in  poele,  moelle. 

4.  What   is   the  pronunciation   of   the  nasal  sounds 

an  or  en,  in,  on,  un? 

The  pronunciation  of  these  sounds  cannot  be  de- 
scribed accurately,  although  the  English  endings  in 
ANG  (ex.:  twanig)  ),  and  on(g)  (ex.:  wrong) 
approximate  an  and  on  :  it  should  be  heard  from 
a  native  born  north  of  the  Loire,  for  in  the  south 
of  France  the  n  is  sounded  aiid  the  nasal  effect  is 
missed ; 


22  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

AN    and    frequently    en    sound    like   an(g)  ;    ex.: 
/  sans,  cent; 

EN  not  pronounced  as  above  sounds  approximately 

like  AN  in  sang;  ex.:  chicn: 

IN  has   the  same  sound;   ex.:   chemin; 

ON   sounds   approximately   as   it   does   in   wrong; 

ex. :  bon; 

UN  sounds  approximately  as  UN  in  uncle,  but  the 
n  is  not  perceived ;    ex :  brun. 

Note. 

AN,  F.s,  IN,  ON  are  changed  to  am,  em,  im,  om  before 
the  letters  b  and  p;  ex:  chambre,  pompe,  but  their 
sound  remains  the  same. 

5.  How  are  French  consonants  pronounced? 

As  in  English  but  with  the  following  exceptions : 

a)  :  B,  p,  p,  s,'  T,  X,  at  the  end  of  a  word  are  generally 

silent ;  ex. :    plomb,  bond,  loup,  chiens,  vent,  deux. 

b)  :r  is  silent  when  it  ends  verbs  in  er  (not  verbs  in 

IR  and  oir)  ;  ex. :  aimer;  ending  other  words  it  is 
sounded  ;  ex. :   cher,  hier. 

c)  :  c  before  e  and  i  has  the  same  sound  as  s;  ex.: 

cerise,  cinema;  before  a,  o,  and  u  it  sounds  like  K 
unless  it  is  printed  g  (cedilla)  in  which  case  it 
sounds   like  s;   ex.:   ga,-apergu. 

d)  :  G  before  a,  o,  u  sounds  as  it  does  in  get  ;  ex. : 
gdter,  g outer,  aigu;  before  e  and  i  it  sounds  like  s 
in  pleasure  ;  ex. :  geste,  giffle. 

J  always  sounds  like  s  in  pleasure. 

^)  :  H  is  sometimes  mute;  ex.:  histoirc,  and  sometimes 
aspirate ;  ex. :  hache.  When  it  is  mute  le  or  la 
become   l";    ex.:    Vhommc,   VJiistoire;    when  it   is 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE   CLEAR  23 

aspirate  it  is  not  sounded  but  le  or  la  stand ;  ex. : 
le  her  OS,  la  hache,  and  if  the  article  is  un,  une,  the 
final  N  in  UN  is  not  sounded  while  the  final  e  in 
UNE  is  sound-ed :  une  hache. 


Note. 


No  rule,  only  usage  can  determine  when  h  is  aspirate 
or  mute. 


CH  sounds  like  sh  ;    ex. :  chanter; 
TH   sounds  like  t  ;    ex. :   theatre. 

6.  What  ift  meant  by  liaison  in  French? 

The  sounding  of  a  final  letter  otherwise  mute  be- 
fore a  word  beginning  with  a  vowel ;  for  example, 
the  s  in  gros  is  not  sounded  in  im  gros  Hire,  but  it 
sounds  like  z  in  un  gros  arhre;  again  the  t  in  sont 
is  mute  in  Us  sont  venus,,  but  it  is  sounded  in  Us 
sont  arjfives. 

This  is  caused  by  the  aversion  the  French  have  for 
any  harsh  combination  of  consonants. 
The  French  ear  is  equally  offended  by  what  is 
called  hiatus,  viz.,  two  harsh  sounding  vowels ;  the 
French  language  obviates  the  hiatus  by  inserting  a 
T  between  the  two  vowels ;  ex. :  parle-t-ellef  vien- 
dra-t-on?  and  more  frequently  by  eHding  e  or  a 
in  the  article  before  nouns  beginning  by  a  vowel ; 
ex. :  Varc,  I'orme. 


Note. 


Too  many  liaisons  as  well  as  the  tendency  to  pronounce 
consonants  dropped  in  current  usage  characterize 
the   semi-educated. 


24  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

7.   What    French    sounds   seem   to   be   generally  ill- 
treated  by  English-speaking  people? 

o)  :  Most  consonants  which  English-speaking  people 
pronounce  sharply,  as  if  they  were  double,  instead 
of  pronouncing  them  softly,  using  the  lips  more 
than  the  teeth;  ta  table  should  not  be  pronounced 
tta  ttable. 

b)  :  Av  and   6   are  often  wrongly   pronounced  as   if 

they  consisted  of  a  scale  of  o's  whereas  the  French 
preserve  to  this  sound  its  purity:  tot  is  not  pro- 
nounced like  toe,  it  is  much  nearer  to  to  in  total. 

c)  :  EU  is  often  wrongly  pronounced  like  u  in  bu}t;  it 

should  be  uttered  with  the  lips  hardly  opened. 

d)  :  the  n  should  be  entirely  silent  in  the  nasal  sounds 

AN,  IN,  ON,  UN ;  these  sounds,  in  spite  of  their 
name,-  are  remarkably  fluid  and  harmonious. 

e)  :  The  correct  pronunciation  of  the  French  R  is  of 

vital  importance  and  ought  to  be  watched  from  the 
very  first  lesson.  Except  in  a  few  provinces  the 
French  pronounce  the  R  by  vibrating  the  base,  not 
the  tip,  of  the  tongue.(l)  The  consequence  is  that 
this  R  is  really  a  guttural  sound,  rather  similar  to  a 
German  or  a  Scotch  ch.  In  fact  the  French  word 
Vorme  can  be  approximated  very  nearly  by  pro- 
nouncing the  word  loch  as  a  German  or  a  Scotch- 
man does,  and  then  adding  the  letter  m,  loch-M. 
However  the  ch  should  be  sounded  with  as  little 
effort  and  as  briefly  as  possible. 

Note. 

1.  English-speaking  people  who   accent  French   words 
as  they  do  their  own   language,   for  instance,   pro- 


(1)   A    Frenchman    has    no    trouble    in    rolling   a    succession    of    r's,    keeping 
tlie   tip   of    his   tongue    between   his   teeth   all    the   time. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  25 


nouncing  la  cap' itale  instead  of  la  ca-pi-ta-le,  pro- 
duce a  singing  effect  which  does  not  exist  in  French. 

2.  The  sentence  "Rochambeau  fut  heureux  de  lutter 
pour  les  Insurgents"  is  a  good  test  and  should  be 
practised. 


26 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADIC  CLEAR 


GRAMMATICAL  TERMS 


Grammar,  la  grammaire 

A  rule,  unc  regie 

The  alphabet,  Valphabet 

A  vowel,  line  voyelle 

A  consonant,  une  consonnc 

A  word,  un  mot 

A  phrase,  une  locution 

A  sentence,  une  phrase 

Spelling  Vorthographe 

Etymology,  Vetymologie 

The  root,  la  racinc 

To  parse,  analyser 

Speech,  le  discours 

Parts  of  speech,  les  parties 

dii  discours 
Article,  Vartklc 
Noun,  le  nom 
Proper,  propre 
Common,  commun 
Material,  concret 
Abstract,  abstrait 
Compound,  compose 
Gender,  le  genre 
Number,  le  nombre 
Singular,  singulier 
l^lural,  pluriel 
Subject,  le  sujet 


Direct  object,    le    comple- 
ment direct 

Indirect  object,  le  comple- 
ment indirect 

Adjective,  Vadjectif  (masc.) 

Adjective  of  quality,  I'ad- 
jectif  qualiiicatif 

Comparative,  le  comparatif 

Positive,  positif 

Superlative,  siiperlatif 

Demonstrative,    demons- 
tratif 

Pronoun,  le  pronom 

Personal,  personnel 

Inttix  jgative,   interrogatif 

Relative,  relatif 

Verb,  le  verbe 

Conjugation,  la  conju- 
gaison 

Transitive,  transitif 

Intransitive,  intransitif 

Passive,  passif 

Auxiliary,  Vauxiliaire 

Infinitive,  Vinfinitif 

Indicative,  Vindicatif 

Subjunctive,   le  subjonctif 

Present,  le  present 


FRENCH    GRAMMAR   MADE   CLEAR 


27 


Imperfect,  I'imparfait 

Perfect,  le  passe 

Pluperfect,  le  plus-que- 
parfait 

Future,  le  futiir 

Participle,  le  participe 

Adverb,  Vadverhe 

Preposition,  la  preposi- 
tion 

Conjunction,  la  conjonc- 
tion 

Exclamation,  V interjection. 


Punctuation,   ponctuation 
,      La  virgiile 
]     le  poini  virgule 
:     les  deux  points 

le  point 
?     le  point  d'interro- 

gation 
!     le  point  d' excla- 
mation 
-^  «  »  tes  guillemets 
-    []  la  parenthese 
—  le  tiret 
~      -     le  trait  d'nnion 


ARTICLES 


1.  How  do  you  translate  the  definite  article  the? 

In  English  the  definite  article  the  is  used  in  every 
case,  whether  the  noun  be  masculine,  feminine,  or 
neuter,  singular  or  plural.  We  say  the  man,  the 
woman,  the  house,  the  houses,  without  any  change 
in  the  article. 

In  French  the  article  varies  as  follows : 

LE  is  used  before  m.asculine  nouns  in  the  singular: 

ex. :  le  gar g on,  the  boy  ; 

LA  is  used  before  feminine  nouns  in  the  singular: 

ex.:  la  Me,  the  girl; 

LEs  is  used  before  nouns  of  either  gender  in  the 

plural :  ex. :  les  gargons,  les  filles,  the  boys,  the 

GIRLS. 


2.  What  is  meant   by    the   elision    and   by   the  con- 
traction of  the  article? 

Elision : 


Before  nouns  beginning  with  a  vowel  or  a  silent 
h,  le  and  la  become  iJ,  ex.:  Varhre  (masc),  the 
tree,  Vecole  (fem.),  the  school,  Vherhe  (fern.), 
the  grass. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  29 

Contractions: 

A  LE  is    contracted   into  au(1) 
A  LEs  is   contracted   into   aux 
DE  LE  is  contracted  into  du 
DE  LES  is  contracted  into  des 

3.  Are  there  any  rules  for  the  distinction  of  genders 
in  French? 

The  English  names  of  men    are    masculine. 
"  "  "       "    women  are  feminine. 

"  "       "    things  are  neuter. 

Nothing  can  be  simpler. 

In  French  the  names  of  men  and  of  male  animals 
are  all  masculine,  ex. :  le  pere,  le  medecin,  le 
taureau,  (father,  doctor,  bull); 
the  names  of  women  and  female  animals  are  all 
feminine,  ex. :  la  mere,  la  couturiere,  la  hrehis, 
(mother,  seamstress,   ewe)  ; 

but  there  is  no  neuter,  and  the  consequence  is  that 
names   of    things   and   animals    whose   sex   is   not 
stated  have  to  be  either  masculine  or  feminine,  and 
apparently   are  arbitrarily   so.     For  instance,   um- 
brella,  le  parapluie,   is   masculine,  but   parasol,   if 
ombrelle  is   feminine;  the  owl  is  masculine  as  le 
hibou,  but  feminine  as  la  choiiette,  although  both 
words  refer  to  the  same  bird. 
Are  there  any  ways  of  knowing  which  nouns  are 
masculine  and   which   are   feminine? 
Yes. 
P.     Any  one  with  a  good  knowledge  of  the  Latin  lan- 
guage  need   not   learn   the   French   genders:   most 


(1)  Medieval  French  and  even  present  day  patois  contract  A  le  into  o/.  The 
transformation  of  l  into  u  is  of  constant  occurrence  and  ought  not  to  sur- 
prise   English-speaking    people    who    pronounce    hall   like    haul. 


30  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

masculine  and  neuter  nouns  in  Latin  arc  masculine 
in  French  while  most  feminine  nouns  in  Latin  are 
also  feminine  in  French. 

2°.     In  a  great  many  cases  the  gender  of  the  word  can 
be  inferred  from  its  ending. 

a)  Masculine 

1.  Nouns  in  a_,  i,  o,  eau,  and  u^  ex.:    un  beta,  un 
rot,  un  zero,  un  chapeau,  un  ncvcu. 

2.  Nouns  in  e,  except  nouns  in  te  or  tie,   ex.:   Ic 
hie,  le  conge. 

3.  Most   nouns   in   age_,    ege,   aire,   otre,   ex. :   le 
menage,  le  college,  le  vestiaire,  le  lab  oral  oire. 

4.  Most   nouns   ending   in   consonants    other   than 
those  hereafter  stated  to  be  feminine. 

b)  Feminine 

1.  Nouns  in  te,  tie,  ex.:  la  charite,  Vamitie. 

2.  Nouns  in  ee,  ex. :  la  matinee. 

3.  Nouns  in  sign  and.  tion,  ex. :  la  tension,  V ap- 
plication. 

4.  Nouns  ending  in  mute  e  preceded  by  one  or  es- 
pecially two  consonants,  ex. :  la  gare,  la  bagarre. 

5.  Most  abstract  nouns,  ex.:  la  gloire,  la  justice, 
la  vertu. 

Note. 

1.  One  noun  denoting  a  man  is  feminine:  la  sentinclle, 
THE   SENTRY,   and   the  pronoun   used  with   reference 

to    it    is    ELLE. 

2.  Gens,  people,  is  feminine.  Ex. :  de  bonnes  gens, 
cooD  people,  except  when  the  adjective  is  placed  after, 
ex.:  des  gens  maladroUs,  awkward  people. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  31 

4.  Does  the  French  language  use  the  definite  article 
le,  la,  les  wherever  there  is  the  in  English? 

No,  LE,  LA,  LES  are  used  in  many  cases  in  whicli 
the  is  left  out  in  English :  abstract  nouns,  nouns 
relating  to  substances,  the  names  of  countries,  the 
names  of  colors,  plural  nouns  denoting  the  whole 
species,  nouns  designating  titles,  which  in  English 
are  not  preceded  by  the,  take  the  article  in  French ; 
ex.:  LA  gourmandise  (greediness),  la  confiture 
(jam),  le  Connecticut  (Connecticut),  le  bleu 
(blue),  les  paresseux  (lazy  boys),  le  President 
Wilson  (^President  Wilson). 


Note. 


Medieval  French  left  out  the  article  in  practically  every 
case  in  which  English  omits  it.  As  proverbs  are 
generally  handed  down  from  generation  to  genera- 
tion in  their  original  form  it  is  not  surprising  that 
many  French  proverbs  include  nouns  not  preceded 
by  the  article.  Ex.:  souvent  femme  varie ;  Us  sont 
comme   chien    et    chat;     (woman     often     changes; 

THEY    ARE   LIKE   CAT    AND    DOG.) 


5.  How  is  the  indefinite  article  a,  an  translated  into 

French? 

By  UN  before  masculine  nouns,  by  une  before 
feminine  nouns,  ex. :  im  couteau,  a  knife,  une 
heure,  an  hour. 

6.  What  is  meant  by  the  "partitive"  article? 

V      0,  ^y,  DE  M^  DES,  indicating  a  "part"  of  the  object 

y^"'^      denoted  by  the  following    noim  are  called  partitive 

articles :  they  correspond  to  some  or  any  in  English. 

but  are  also  used  in  sentences  too  general  to  admit 

these  w^ords  in  English.   For  instance :  nous  hoirons 


32 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


du  hit  means:  we  shall  drink  some  milk  (on  a 
given  occasion),  but  it  also  means :  we  shall  drink 
MILK    (habitually). 


Note. 


L  The  mistake  not  infrequently  made  by  English-speak- 
ing people:  nous  hoirons  de  lait,  instead  of  du  lait, 
is  caused  by  a  confusion  of  genders  (one  thinks  of 
the  feminine  partitive:  nous  hoirons  de  I'eau). 

2.  However,  de  instead  of  du,  de  la,  des  is  necessary, 

a)  after  pas,  plus,  beaucoup,  peu,  trop.    Ex.:  je  n'ai 

pas  de  livres,  I  have  no  books  ;   b)  before  a  noun 

preceded  by  an  adjective.    Ex. :   il  y  a  de  grandes 

forets  en  France,  there  are  large  forests  in  France. 


Resume 

What   rules   are  exemplified  in  the  following  words 
or  phrases? 


The  gentleman 

The  lady 

The  gentlemen 

The  ladies 

The  pupil 

The  clock 

I  go  to  school 

Send  thern  to  the  swimming 

pools 
The  teacher's  desk 
The  college  girls'  badges 

The  wall  ■! 

The  breeze  -j 

Laziness 
Maple  syrup 


le  monsieur 
la  dame 
les  messieurs 
les  dames 

V  eleve 

V  horloge 

je  vais  au  college 
envoyez-les  aux  piscines 

le  pupitre  du  professeur 

les  insignes  des  etudiantes 

le  mur 
or  la  muraille 

la  brise 
or  le  vent 

la  paresse 

'ic  jus  d'erable 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


33 


Canada 

Red 

Stupid  people 

Marshal   Foch 

A  pencil 

A  slate 

Pencils,  slates 

Some  pie,  cakes 

Walks,  too  many  walks 

Expensive  fountain-pens  < 


le  Canada 

le  rouge 

les  gens  betes 

le  marechal  Foch 

un  crayon 

une  ardoise 

des  crayons,  des  ardoises 

de  la  tarte,  des  gateaux 

des  promenades,  trop  dc 

promenades 
des  stylos  couteux, 
or  de  couteux  stylos. 


II 

NOUNS 

1.  How  does  the  French  language  form  the  feminine 
of  nouns? 

The  feminine  of  English  nouns  is  formed  in  three 
different  ways,  a)  by  addling  ess  to  the  mascuhne, 
ex.:  lion,  lioness;  b)  by  using  a  word  totally  dif- 
ferent in  form  from  the  masculine,  ex. :  king, 
queen;  son,  daughter;  bull,  coiv;  c)  by  prefixing 
the  words  woman,  female,  she  to  the  masculine, 
ex. :  a  woman  painter^  a  female  cousin,  a  she-wolf. 
The  French  language  uses  forms  corresponding  to 
the  first  two  of  these  three  ways  i.e.  a)  adding 
ESSE  to  the  masculine,  ex. :  prince,  princesse; 
b)  using  feminine  forms  entirely  different  from 
the  masculine,  ex.:  pere,  (father),  mere  (mo- 
ther) ;  oncle  (uncle),  taHte  (aunt)  ;  taureau 
(bull),  vache  (cow)  ; 

but  apart  from  a  few  cases  in  which  the  word 
femme  is  used  (une  femme  peintre),  the  French 
language  instead  of  prefixing  a  feminine  word 
to  the  masculine  noun  adds  the  letter  e  which 
in  the  transformation  of  Latin  into  French  became 
distinctly  the  feminine  ending  in  adjectives  or 
present  participles  (see  page  39). 
So,  we  can  lay  down  as  a  rule  that  the  French 
language  forms  the  feminine  by  adding  e  to  the 
masculine;  ex.:  havard,  fem.  havarde;  commerganf, 
fem.  commevQante;  bourgeois,  fem.  bourgeoise. 
Nouns  ending  in  e  in  the  masc.  do  not  change. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  35 

2.  Are  there  nc^  modifications  of  the  noun  beyond  the 
addition  of  an  e? 

Yes. 

a)  Some  nouas  slightly  modify  the  last  syllable: 

1.  nouns  ending  in  er  have  their  feminine  in  ere. 
Ex.:  hcrger  (shepherd),  fern,  hergere; 

2.  nouns  ending  in  ot  have  their  feminine  in  otte. 
Ex.:linot    (linnet),   fem.   linotte. 

Chat  (cat)  shows  the  same  modi'fication,  chatte. 

3.  nouns  ending  in  ien  or  on  have  their  feminine 
in  lENNE,  ONNE.  Ex. :  Men  (dog),  fem.  chienne; 
lion,  fem.  lionne. 

b)  Some  nouns  v^hich  in  the  course  of  tirne  came  to 
be  modified  in  the  masculine  show  their  original 
form  in  the  feminine : 

1.  nouns  ending  in  x  have  their  fem.  in  se^  Ex.: 
epoux  (husband),  fem.  Spouse,  (masc.  in  old 
French=ESP0us) ; 

2.  nouns  ending  in  eau  have  their  feminine  in  elle. 
Ex.:  chameau  (camel),  fem.  cJmmelle  (the 
English  word  borrowed  from  the  French  in  the 
eleventh   century   shows   that   at   that   time  the 

masculine  ended  in  el)  : 

3.  nouns  ending  in  eur  have  their  feminine  in  euse, 
because  the  R  was  not  sounded.  Ex. :  menteiir 
(liar),  fem.  menteuse. 

However,  some  nouns  in  eur  have  their  feminine 
in  ICE.  Ex.:  acteur,  fem.  actrice,  and  chasseur 
(hunter)  has  chasseresse  in  the  feminme. 


36  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

3.  What  changes  do   French   nouns  undergo   in   the 

plural? 

In  French  as  In  English  the  plural  is  formed  by 
addmg^  s  to  the  sinifular.    Ex.:    im  livre,   A  book; 
deux  livrcSj  two  books. 
This  s  is  always  silent. 

Note. 

^    1.  Nouns  ending  in  s,  x,  z,  do  not  change  in  the  plural. 
/  Ex.:   les  bras   (the  arms),  les  voix   (the  voices), 

/  les  nes  (the  noses). 

^  2.  Nouns  endings  in  al  have  the  plural  in  aux  (1),  ex.: 
cheval  (horse),  plural  chevaux,  except  'bal  (a 
dance),  chacal  (a  jackal)  and  festival  (a  musical 
festivity)   which  have  their  plurals  in  s. 

^       3.  Nouns  ending  in  au,  eau,  eu,  and  oeu  have  their 
\  plural  in  x.  Ex.:  joyau   (jewel),  pi.  joyaux ;  bateau 

!  (boat),    pi.    bateaux;    lieu    (place),    pi.    lieux;    v(£u 

(vow),  pi.  VQtUX. 

The    words    bijou    (jewel),    caillou    (pebble),   chou 

j  (cabbage),    genou    (knee),    hibou    (owl),    joujou 

■     (toy),  and  pou  (louse)   also  add  x  in  the  plural. 

\  4.  The  words  bail  (lease),  corail  (coral),  email 
(enamel),  soupirail  (cellar-window),  travail 
(work),  and  vitrail  (stained  glass  window)  form 
their  plural  in  aux  :  baux,  coraux,  emaux,  soupiraux, 
travaux,  vitraux. 

4.  How  do  compound  nouns  form  their  plural? 

Most  compound  nouns  mentioned  in  grammars  are 
hardly  ever  used  in  the  plural ;  many  others  can 
be  written  in  two  ways,  and  the  present  tendency 
is  to  treat  them  as  ordinary  nouns.  For  instance, 
reveille-matin  (alarm-clock)  can  be  either  left 
as  it  is  or  it  can  be  written  reveille-matins. 


(1)  Old  French  had  a  tendency  to  change  L  into  u  before  consonants. 
Hence  cheval  in  the  plural  was  spelt  chevaus.  S  became  x  because  the 
shorthand  of  those  days  abbreviated  us  as  x  and  scribes  gradually  confused 
X  and   s. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  Zl 

We  can  lay  it  down  as  a  rule  that  when  the  two 
words  are  either  two  nouns,  ex. :  reine-margnerite 
(marguerite,  a  flower)  or  an  epithet  and  a  noun, 
ex.:  rouge-gorge  (robin  redbreast),  both  words 
take  an  s  in  the  plural :  reines-marguerites,  rouges- 
gorges;  but  when  one  of  the  words  only  explains 
or  completes  the  other  it  does  not  take  the  s.  Ex.  : 
un  arc-en-ciel,  (a  rainbow),  des  arcs-en-ciel. 

5.  Does  the  French  language  ever  use  proper  names 

in  the  plural? 

Never  in  every-day  use,  ex. :  we  invited  the  Mar- 
quettes,  nous  avons  invite  les  Marquette; 
but  m  speaking  of  distinguished  people  or  of  their 
works  the_s  is  used,  ex. :  les  deux  Corneillcs,  the 
TWO  Corneilles;  les  Millets  dn  miisec  de  Boston, 
the  Millets  in  the  Boston  Museum. 

6.  Are  collective  nouns  in  French  singular  or  plural? 

They  used  to  be  plural,  as  they  are  in  Latin  and  not 
infrequently  in  English,  but  they  are  now  singular, 
ex. :  nous  avons  joint  rennemi;  il  est  a  nous,  we 

HAVE   MET  THE   ENEMY  ;   THEY  ARE   OURS. 

Resume 

What  rules  are  exemplified  in  the  following  words? 

Hote   (host)  fern,  hot  esse    (hostess) 

Coq    (cock)  fern,  poule    (hen) 

Cousin    (male   cousin)  fem.  c oiisine  {itm.  cowsm) 

Boulanger  (baker)  fem.  houlangere 

Sot  (fool)  fem.  sotHe 


38 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Alsacien  (Alsatian) 
Patron  (master) 
Malheiireux  (wretch) 
Jumeau  (twin) 
Buveur  (drunkard) 
Afnbassadeiir  (ambassador) 
une  plume  (a  pen) 
line  noix  (a  nut) 
r arsenal  (the  arsenal) 
le  noyau  (the  kernel) 
k  rail  (the  rail) 
le  cerf -volant  (the  kite) 
les  Bourbons   (dynasty J 


fem.  Alsacienne 
fem.  patronne 
fem.  malheureuse 
fem>.  jumelle 
fem.  buveuse 
fem.  ambassadrice 
deux  plumes 
deux  noix 
les  arscnaux 
les  noyaux 
les  rails 

les  cerfs-volants 
the  Bourbons, 


Ill 

ADJECTIVES 

Introductory  Note — French  grammars  as  well  as  English 
grammars  treat  first  of  Adjectives  of  quality 
{adjectifs  qualUlcatifs),  ex.:  heau  (handsome), 
laid  (plain),  and  afterwards  of  Pronominal 
Adjectives  {adjectifs  pronominaux)  correspond- 
ing to  this,  what,  my,  some,  many,  every,  etc. 

A.     ADJECTIVES  OF  QUALITY 

1.  What  are  the  chief  differences  between  adjectives 

of  quality  in  French  and  in  English? 

Adjectives  of  quality  in  French  a)  are  not  invari- 
able as  they  are  in  English,  they  are  modified  ac- 
cording to  gender  and  number  (a  big  bov,  utt 
grand  gargon,  a  big  girl,  une  grande  iille;  big 
boys,  de  grands  gargons) ;  b)  they  never  show 
comparison  by  inflexion  (er,  est)  as  in  English, 
but  by  prefixing  plus,  le  plus,  (more,  the  most)  ; 
ex. :  bigger,  plus  grand,  the  biggest,  le  plus  grand; 
c)  they  are  placed,  even  in  prose,  as  often  after 
the  noun  as  before  it,  ex. :  une  vieille  maison,  an 
old  house,  une  maison  neuve,  a  new  house. 

2.  How  is  the  feminine  of  adjectives  formed  in  French? 

Practically  as  the  feminine  of  nouns  (see  page  34). 
General  rule :  the  feminine  of  all  adjectives  is  end- 
ed  by   E,   either  because  the  mascuHne   is  already 


40  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

thus  ended,  ex, :  aveugle,  blind,  or  because  an  e  is 
added  to  denote  the  feminine,  ex. :  a  blue  book, 
un  livre  bleu;  a  blue  stuff,  une  etoffe  bleue. 
The  modifications  stated  on  page  35  in  the  forma- 
tion of  the  feminine  of  nouns  are  also  found  in  the 
feminine  of  adjectives: 

1.  adjectives  in  er  have  their  feminine  in  ere,  ex.: 
leger  (light),  fem.  legere; 

2.  adjectives  in  et  or  ot  have  their  feminine  in 
ETTE,  OTTE,  ex. :  vioUt,  PURPLE,  vioUtte ;  vieillot 
(oldish),  vieillotte; 

However,  complet,  concret,  secret,  discret,  inquiet, 
and  replet  (complete,  concrete,  secretive,  discreet, 
uneasy,  plump)  have  their  feminine  in  ete,  and 
IDIOT  (idiotic)  and  ©evot  (devout)  become  idiote 
and  devote  in  the  feminine; 

3.  adjectives  in  an,  en,  and  on  have  their  feminine 
in  ANNE,  ENNE,  and  onne,  ex.:  paysan  (peas- 
ant), fem.  paysanne;  ancien  (old),  ancienne; 
poltron  (cowardly),  poltronne; 

4.  adjectives  in  eau  have  their  feminine  in  elle  ; 
ex.:    heau  (handsome),  helle; 

fou  (mad)  and  mou  (soft)  also  become  folle 
and  molle. 

Besides  these  modifications  common  to  both  nouns 

and  adjectives  there  are  a  few  others  peculiar  to 

adjectives : 

1.  Adjectives  ending  in  c  have  the  feminine  in  che, 
except  public  (public),  fem.  publique,  and  grec 
(greek),  fem.  grecque.  Ex.:  blanc  (white), 
fem.  blanche;  sec,  (dry),  fem.  seche.  Long, 
(long)  becomes  longue. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  41 

2.  Adjectives  in  s  have  their  feminine,  some  in  se, 
ex.:  niais  (stupid),  niaise,  some  in  sse,  ex.: 
epais  (thick),  epaisse. 

3.  The  large  group  of  adjectives  in  eux  have  their 
feminine;  in  EUSETex. :  peureux  (timid),  pen- 
reuse. 

Adjectives  in  eur  also  have  their  feminine  in  euse  ; 
ex.:  voleur  (thievish),  fem.  voleuse,  except 
meilleur  (better)  and  adjectives  ending  in 
erieur,  ex.:  exterieur  (exterior),  which  only 
add  E,  becoming  meilleure,  exterieure. 

4.  Adjectives  ending  in  f  change  this  letter  into  ve, 
ex.:    neuf  (new),  fem.  neiive. 

5.  Adjectives  in  el  have  their  feminine  in  elle  and 
adjectives  in  eil  have  it  in  eille  :  ex. :  cruel 
(cruel),  cruelle;  par  eil  (similar),  pareille; 
vieux  (old),  becomes  meille. 

6.  Favori  becomes  in  the  feminine  favorite  and 
hebrcu  ( Hebrew)  hehraique;  grand  stays  un- 
changed, although  feminine,  in  the  compound 
nouns  grand'mere  (grandmother),  grand'messe 
(high  mass),  grand'rue  (high  street),  and 
grand'ro ute  (  h igh w a y ) . 

Note. 

Most  adjectives  end  in  e  or  eux  and  form  their  fem- 
inine in  the  simplest  manner,  so  that  the  complication 
is  more  an  appearance  than  an  actuality. 

3.  How  does  French  form  the  plural  of  adjectives? 

a)  Feminine  adjectives  all  ending  in  e  naturally  form 
their  plural  in  s  and  consequently  offer  no  diffi- 
culty, ex.:  une  brume  epaisse  (a  thick  fog),  des 
brumes  epaisses. 


42  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

b)  Masculine  adjectives  as  a  general  rule  also  have 
their  plural  in  s,  ex. :  un  gargon  agile  (a  nimble 
boy),  des  gargons  agiles. 

However : 

1.  adjectives  ending  in  s  or  x  do  not  change  in  the 
plural  masculine,  ex. :  deux  gros  chiens  (two 
LARGE  dogs);  les  paresseux  (lazy  boys); 

2.  adjectives  in  al  have  their  plural  in  Aux,  except 
frugal  (frugal)  and  naval  (naval),  ex.:  un 
homme  brutal  (a  brutal  man),  des  homnias 
brutaux  (brutal  men)  ; 

3.  beau  and  nouveau  become  beaux  and  nou- 
veaux;  tout  becomes  tous  (in  the  masc),  ex.: 
tout  le  college,  all  the  school;  tous  Ics  Sieves, 
ALL  the  boys  ;  toutes  les  Steves,  all  the  girls. 

4.  Can  the  adjective  be  used  as  a  noun  in  French? 

Yes,  and  even  more  naturally  than  in  English,  for 
in  English  it  has  to  be  accompanied  by  a  noun — at 
any  rate  in  the  singular — whereas  in  French  it  does 
not  require  any  such  addition,  ex. :  un  Americain,  an 
American  man;  une  AmSricaine,  an  American 
woman;  des  AmSricains,  American  people;  un 
petit  AmSricain,  an  American  boy;  une  petite 
AmSricaine,  an  American  girl;  un  aveugle,  a 
blind  man;  une  aveugle,  a  blind  woman;  les 
aveugles,  the  blind;  le  plus  riche,  the  richer 
one;    les  plus  vieux,  the  oldest  ones. 

5.  Where  do  you  place  the  adjective  of  quality? 

Generally  after  the  noun,  ex. :  une  promenade  ra- 
vissante,  a   lovely  walk;    une  grammaire  fran- 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  43 

gaise,  a  French   grammar;    une  fille  intelligente, 

AN    INTELLIGENT   GIRL. 

Note. 

1.  The  result  which  poets  or  prose  writers  aiming  at 
a  poetic  effect  obtain  in  English  by  placing  the 
adjective  after  the  noun  is  obtained  in  French  by 
placing  it  before  the  noun.  But  the  noun  ought  to 
be  of  more  than  one  syllaWe  unless  the  adjective  ends 
in  E  or  ES,  ex, :  un  resplendissant  horizon^  a  glowing 
HORIZON ;    la  vaste   mer,    the  wide  ocean. 

2.  The  modern  tendency  to  exaggerate,  and  to  a  cer- 
tain degree  the  diffusion  of  the  English  language 
among  French  people,  encourage  the  habit  of  em- 
phasizing the  adjective  by  placing  it  before  the  noun, 
even  in  conversation :  nobody  ever  says  une  fran- 
gaise  grammaire  because  the  adjective  would  not 
bear  any  stressing,  but  une  ravissante  promenade, 
une  tres  intelligente  fille,  are  unfortunately  often 
heard. 

3.  A  certain  number  of  adjectives  in  daily  use  are  al- 
ways placed  before  the  noun.  No  reason  can  be 
given  for  this  usage:  it  is  impossible,  for  instance, 
to  know, why  we  should  say  une  lourde  malle  (adj. 
before),  a  heavy  trunk,  while  we  say  une  malle 
legere,  a  light  trunk;  une  vieille  maison,  an  old 
HOUSE,  and  une  maison  neuve,  a  new  house,  but 
the  ear  soon  grows  accustomed  to  these  peculiarities. 

The  chief  adjectives  to  be  placed  before  the  noun  are 
the  following,  the  same  usage  generally  applying  to 
their  antonyms  or  opposites : 
ancien,  ex.:  un  ancien  soldat,  an  old  soldier; 

■  beau,  ant.  laid  or  vilain,  ex.:  un  beau  tableau,  tin 
laid  visage,  une  vilaine  physionomie,  a  fine  picture, 
an  ugly  face,    an  ugly  physiognomy; 

bon  or  brave,  ant.  mauvais  or  mechant,  ex.:  un  bon 
devoir,  un  mauvais  devoir,  a  good  exercise,  a  poor 
exercise  ;  un  bon  garcon  or  un  brave  gargon,  un 
mechant  homme,   a  good  fellow,    a  bad  man; 

grand  or  gros  and  ant.  petit,  ex. :  une  grande  mai- 
son, une  grosse  mouclie,  un  petit  oiseau,  a  large 
house,  a  big  fly,  a  little  bird; 

haut,    ex. :  une  haute   tour,  a  high  tower  ; 

jeune  and  ant.  vieux  :  ex. :  un  jeune  professeur,  une 
vieille  histoire,  a  young  professor,    an  old  story; 

LONG  and  ant.  court,  ex. :  un  long  discours,  un  court 
recti,    A  LONG  speech,    a  short  account; 


44  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE   CLEAR 

LOURD,  ex. :  un  lourd  paquet,  a  heavy  parcel  ; 

RiCHE  and  ant.  pauvre,  ex. :  un  riche  banquier,  un 
pauvr:  commis,    a  rich  banicer,  a  poor  clerk; 

VRAi  and  ant.  faux,  ex.:  un  vrai  gentilhomme,  une 
faiisse  comtesse,  A  real  aristocrat,  a  sham  coun- 
tess. 

6.   How   do   you    form    the    comparative    degree    in 
French? 

a)  Equality  is  denoted  by  aussi.  . . .  que  (as. . . .  as), 
ex. :  je  suis  aussi  grand  que  lui  (est),  I  am  as  tall 
AS  HE  IS.    So. . .  THAT  is  translated  by  si. . .  que, 

ex.  :     so    HIGH    THAT   I    CAN    NOT   REACH    IT,    si   haut 

que  je  ne  peux  y  atteindre. 

b)  Superiority  is  denoted  by  plus...  que  (more... 
than),  ex.:  il  est  plus  vieux  que  moi,  he  is  older 
than  I  am. 

Note. 

More  than  followed  by  a  number  is  translated  by 
PLUS  DE  and  not  plus  que,  ex. :  more  than  ten 
TIMES,  plus  dc  dix  fois. 

e)  Inferiority  is  denoted  by  moins...  que  (less... 
than),  ex.:  elle  est  moins  charmante  que  sa  sceur, 

SHE   IS   less   CHARMING  THAN    HER   SISTER. 

7.  How  is  the  superlative  formed  in  French? 

By  prefixing  le  plus,  (masc.)  la  plus,  (fem.)  les 
PLUS,  (plur.)  to  the  adjective,  ex.:  le  match  le  plus 
interessant,  la  partie  la  plus  captivante,  the  most 

INTERESTING    MATCH,     THE    MOST    EXCITING    GAME; 

les  chevaux  les  plus  sauvages,  the  wildest  horses. 

Note. 

Both  much  and  very  are  translated  by  tres,  ex, :  very 
BEAUTIFUL.    MUCH  ADMIRED,    tvcs  bcaii^    tvcs  admire. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  45 

8.  Are  there  any  irregularities  in  the  comparative  or 

superlative  degree  in  French? 

Yes,  in  the  following  adjectives; 

Bon,    good,     comp.,    meilleur,    better*     sup.,    le 

MEILLEUR,    the   best; 

MAuvAis,  bad,  comp.,  pire,  worse,  sup.,  le  pire, 

the  worst; 

Petit,  little,  comp.,  moindre,  less,  sup.,  le  moin- 

dre,  the  least. 

9.  What  is  meant  by  the  "agreement"  of  adjectives? 

French  adjectives  assume  both  the  gender  and  the 
number  of  the  nouns  to  which  they  are  related : 
this  is  called  the  agreement  of  adjectives  {accord 
de  Vadjectif)  :  ex. :  un  devoir  trop  long,  une  leqon 
trop  longue,  too  long  an  exercise,  too  long  a 
LESSON ;  vos  IcQons  sont  trop  courtes,  your  les- 
sons are  too  short. 


Note. 


1.  When  an  adjective  is  related  to  two  nouns,  one  of 
which  is  fern,  while  the  other  is  masc,  the  adj.  should 
be  in  the  masc,  but  it  is  better  to  place  the  masc. 
noun  near  it,    ex. :  Chambres  et  appartements  meU" 

bleS,      FURNISHED     ROOMS     AND     APARTMENTS; 

2.  The  two  adjectives  demi,  half,  and  nu,  bare,  hyphen- 
ated with  a  noun,  are  invariable ;  ex. :  une  demi-heure, 
HALF  AN   hour;    nu-tete,  bare-headed; 

3.  Avoir  Vair,  to  seem,  to  look,  requires  a  different 
agreement  according  to  its  meaning:  when  it  means 
an  habitual  appearance,  the  adjective  should  agree 
with  air  and  consequently  be  in  the  masc.  sing. ;  if  it 
means  an  accidental  appearance,  the  adjective  should 
•agree  with  the  subject  of  the  sentence;  ex.:  les  tigres 
ont  toujours  Vair  mechant,  tigers  always  look 
wicked;  I'ourse  avait  I'air  mechante  ce  matin,  the 
she-bear  looked  wicked  this  morning. 


46 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


B.     PRONOMINAL  ADJECTIVES 

The  adjectives  thus  called  are,  1.  possessive,  2. 
demonstrative,  3.  inter  rog^ative,  4.  indefinite,  5. 
numeral. 


/.    POSSESSIVE  ADJECTIVES 


1.  What  are  the  possessive  adjectives  in  French? 


Masc. 


Fern. 


Plur 


My 

mon 

ma 

mes 

Thy 

ton 

ta 

tes 

His 

' 

^ 

Her 
Its 

son 

sa 

ses 

One  i 

> 

Our 

notre 

notre 

nos 

Your 

votre 

votre 

vos 

Their 

leur 

leur 

leurs 

Note. 


1.  For  the  sake  of  euphony  mon,  ton,  son,  though  ex- 
clusively masc.,  are  placed  before  nouns,  even  though 
feminine,  beginning  with  a  vowel  or  a  mute  h  ;  ex. : 
MY  SOUL,  mon  dme,  your  story,  ton  histoire,  not 
ma  dmCf  ta  histoire. 

2.  Ton,  ta,  tes  are  constantly  heard  in  friendly  con- 
vers.ation  (tutoieinent) ;  this  is  a  habit  of  the  lan- 
guage and  not  a  special  idiom  as  with  Quakers. 

3.  one's  does  not  exist  in  French  and  it  is  a  great 
shortcoming:  to  lose  one's  money  and  he  has  lost 
HIS  money  are  both  translated  by:  pcrdrc  son  ar- 
gent; il  a  perdu  son  argent. 

4.  mon,  ma,  mes  .are  frequently  used  where  my  is  drop- 
ped in  addressing  people;  ex.:  thank  you,  uncle, 
merci,  mon  oticle ;  yes,  sister,  oui,  ma  soeur; 
dear  friends,  mes  cliers  amis. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  47 

2.  What  is  the  agreement  of  son,  sa? 

Son,  sa,  agree  in  gender  and  number  with  the 
noun  following,  whereas  in  English  the  possessor 
always  governs  and  not  the  object  possessed;  so 

HE    SOLD    HIS    HOUSE   and   SHE   SOLD   HER    HOUSE  arC 

translated  il  vendit  sa  maison,  elle  vendit  sa  maison; 
son  ais  (his  or  her  son)  can  be  said  equally  wel: 
of  a  father  or  a  mother. 

//.    DEMONSTRATIVE  ADJECTIVES 

1.  What  are  the  demonstrative  adjectives? 

The  demonstrative  adjectives,  so  called  because 
they  point  out  some  object  and  are  generally  ac- 
companied by  a  gesture,  are  ce ci  corres- 
ponding to  THIS,    CE LA  corresponding  to 

THAT,  and  CE LA-BAs,  Corresponding  to  yon- 
der ;  ex. :  this  little  book,  ce  petit  livre-ci;  that 
BIG  DICTIONARY,  ce  QTos  dictiofifiaire-ld;  yonder 
steeple,  ce  clocher  Id-has,  or  ce  clocher-ld  Id-bas. 

Note. 

1.  CI  is  a  contraction  of  ici; 

2.  CE...CI,  CE...LA,  spelt  CECi  and  cela,  correspond  to 
the  pronouns  this,  that;  ex.:  remember  this,  rap- 
peles  vous  ceci;    write  that  down,    notes  cela; 

3.  ci  and  la  are  left  out  when  the  meaning  is  clear :  ce 
livre,    ce  clocher. 

2.  What  modifications  do  the  demonstrative  adjectives 

undergo? 

Ce,  masc,  becomes  cet  before  a  vowel  or  a  mute  H ; 
ex.:  THIS  atlas,  cct  atlas,,  that  man,  cet  homme: 
cette  is  the  feminine  of  ce  and  cet  ;  ex. :  that  old 
fence,  cette  vieille  bar  Here; 


48  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


I 


CEs  is  the  plural  both  masc.  and  fem. ;  ex. :  those 
HORSES  AND  COWS,  ces  chevaux  (masc.)  et  ces 
vaches   (fem). 

///.    INTERROGATIVE  ADIECTIVES 

What  are  the  interrogative  adjectives? 

In  English  there  are  two  interrogative  adjectives^ 
WHAT  and  WHICH  (more  definite  than  What), 
Which. ^  has  no  equivalent  in  French  and  it  is 
pity.    What?  is  translated  by 

Sing.     QUEL     (masc),    quelle     (fem.) 
Plur.     QUELS  (masc),     quelles  (fem.). 

Ex.  :      WHAT    BOOKj      WHAT    BOOKS    DO    YOU    READ.' 

quel  livre,  quels  Uvres  lisez-vousf  what  school; 
WHAT  SCHOOLS  DO  YOU  MEAN?  de  quclle  ecole,  di 
quelles  ecoles  parlez-vousf 

Note. 

Quel    is   also    exclamative;    ex.:    what   a    man  I    quel 
homme!    what   soldiers!    quels  soldats! 

IV.    INDEFINITE   ADJECTIVES 

They  are: 

aucun,  no  divers,  sundry 
autre,  other                           -         quelconque,   whatever 

chaque,  every,  each  quelque,  some,  a  few 

meme,  same  quel  que,  whatever 

maint,  many  a  tel,   such 

plusieurs,  several  tout,  all,  the  whole. 
certain,  certain,  some 

Note. 

Plusieurs  does  not  mean  many,  but  several  or"  a  few, 
ex.:  plusieurs  acves  sont  sortis  des  linUtes^  several 

BOYS,  OR   a   few   boys,  BROKE   BOUNDS. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


49 


1.  What  are  the 

1  un,  une 

2  deux 

3  trois 

4  qiiatre 

5  cinq 

6  six 

7  sept 

8  huit 

9  neuf 

10  dix 

11  onze 

12  douze 

13  treize 

14  quatorze 

15  quinze 

16  seize 


V.    NUMERALS 

cardinal  numerals? 

17  dix-sept 

18  diix-huit 

19  dix-neuf 

20  vingt 

21  vingt-et-un 
30  trente 

40  quarante 
50  cinquante 
60  soixante 
70  soixante-dix 
80  quatre-vingts 
90  quatre-vingt-dix 
100  cent  (not  un  cent) 
1000  milfe  (not  un  mille) 
a  million,  un  million 
a  billion,  un  milliard. 


What  18  to  be  noticed  in  the  formation  of  cardinal 
numerals? 

a)  From  un  up  to  seize  they  are  mere  contractions 
of  the  latin  numerals. 

b)  Dix-sept,  dix-huit,  dix-neuf  consist  of  dix  (ten) 
to  which  SEPT,  HUIT,  NEUF  are  added. 

c)  21,  31,  41,  51,  61,  71  insert  et  between  the  two 
numbers :  vingt-et  un,  trente-et  un,  quarante-et- 
un,  cinquante-et-un,  soixante-et-un,  soixante-et^ 
onze;  the  other  nunjbers  are  formed  as  in  English: 
twenty-two,  vingt-deux;  sixty-nine,  soixante- 
neuf;    eighty-five,  quatre  vingt-cinq; 

d)  vingt,  cent  take  an  s  only  when  preceded  by 
another    number;    ex.:    quatre-vingts    (80),    trois 


50  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

cents  (300),    but  when  they  are  also  followed  by 
another  number  they  are  invariable ;    ex. :    quatre- 
vingt-neuf  (89),  trots  cent  quatre  (304); 
c)    CENT  and   mille  are  not    followed    by    et;    ex.: 
cent  deux,  a  hundred   and   two;    mille   dix-sept, 

ONE    thousand    and    SEVENTEEN; 

/)  the  final  consonants  in  deux,  trots,  cino,  six. 
SEPT,  HuiT,  NEUF,  DTx.  viNGT,  are  not  sounded 
before  another  consonant,  but  are  sounded  before 
a  vowel  or  a  mute  h  ;  ex. :  trois  heures  trots  minutes 
(three  minutes  past  three)  is  pronounced  trois- 
h eurcs  troi-minn  tes  : 

g)  HUIT  joups  simply  means  a  week,  and  quinze 
JOURS  a  fortni.ijht. 

3.  How  do  you  form  ordinal  numerals? 

By  adding-  ieme  (corresponding  to  the  Latin  imus) 
to  the  cardinal  form ;  ex. :  trois-ieme,  third. 

1st  premier  17th.  dix-septieme 

2nd  deuxieme  18th  dix-huitieme 

3rd  troisieme  19th  dix-neuvieme 

4th  quatrieme  20th  vingtieme 

5th  cinquieme  21st  vingt-et-unieme 

6th  sixieme  22nd  vingt-deuxieme 

7th  septieme  30th  trentieme 

8th  huitieme  31st  trente-et-unieme 

9th  neuvieme  40th  quarantieme 

10th  dixieme  50th  cinquantieme 

11th  onzieme  60th  soixantieme 

12th  douzieme  70th  soixante-dixieme 

13th  treizieme  80th  quatre-vingtieme 

14th  quatorziemfe  90th    quatre-vingt-dixieme 

15th  quinzieme  100th  centieme 

16th  seizieme  1000th  millieme. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  51 


Note. 


Fractions   are    indicated   in   French    as    in   English    by 
the  ordinal   number,  with  these  exceptions: 
HALF  is  translated  by  moitie  or  demi. 
THIRD  "      "      le    tiers 
FOURTH "     "    le   quart. 

4.  Does  the  French  language  use  an  ordinal  number 

in  all  cases  in  which  English  uses  it? 

No,  the  French  language  uses  the  cardinal  number 
instead  of  the  ordinal; 

a)    in  speaking  of  days  of  the  month  except  the  first ; 

ex.:   November  fourth,  le  quatre   nov-embre; 
h)    in  giving  the  order  of  succession  of  kings,  except 

the    first ;    ex.  :•   Louis    the    Fourteenth,    Louis 

Quatorse;     George    the    Third    lost    America, 

Georges  Trois  perdit  VAmerique; 

c)  in  speaking  of  the  books  and  chapters  of  a  literary 
work,  except  the  first,  ex. :  book  the  second,  Uvre 
deux;  chapter  the  tenth,    chapitre  dix. 

5.  How  do  the  French  express  the  time? 

The  time  between  the  half  hour  and  the  hour  is 

read  as   follows : 

It  is  twenty  five  minutes  to  six,  il  est  six  heures 

moins  inngt-cinq  (observe  that  o'clock  is  left  out 

in    Enolish    and    minutes    in    French).     It    is    a 

quarter  to  twelve  (noon),  il  est  midi  moins  le 

quart,  or  moins  un  quart. 

The  time  between  the  hour  and  the  half  is  read 

as  follows : 

It  is  ten  past  nine,  il  est  neuf  heures  dix. 

It  is  a  quarter  past  twelve  (midnight),    il  est 

minuit  et  quart. 


52 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


It  is  half  past  one^   //  est  une  heure  ct  demic. 
Idioms. — It  has  just  struck  one,    une  heure  vient 
de  sonner.  At  what  time?  a  quelle  heure? 
At  two  sharp,  on  the  stroke  of  two,  sur  le  coup 
de  deux  heures,  a  deux  heures  sonnant,   a  deux 
heures  juste. 

How  old  are  you?    Quel  age  avez-vousf 
I  am  seventeen,         J'ai  dix-sept  ans. 

Resume 


What  rules  are  exemplified  in  the  following  phrases 
or  words? 


Your  cousin  is  cheerful, 
Her  expressioii  is  never  se- 
vere. 
Your  daughter  is  mute, 
A  truly  Christian  woman. 
The  magpie  is  both  timid 
and  thievish, 


Votre  cousine  est  gaie. 

Son  expression  n'est  ja- 
mais severe. 

Votre  fille  est  muette. 

Une  vraie  chretienne. 

La  pie  est  peureuse  et 
voleuse. 


Disobedient  boys  are  often 

punished, 
My  friendly  rebukes, 
All  the  trees  and   all  the 

flowers. 

You  fat,  lazy  fellow! 
You  little  braggart  (fem.)  ! 
The   white   mare   and  the 
gray  one. 

Two  white  houses, 
White  wreaths, 


Les  eleves  indociles  sont 

souvent  punis. 
Mes  reproches  amicaux. 
Tons  les  arbres  et  toutes 

les  fleurs. 

Gros  paresseux! 
Petite  vantarde! 
La  jument  blanche  et  la 
grise. 

Deux  maisons  blanches. 
De  blanches  guirlandes. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


53 


This  stream,  though  wider, 
is  more  transparent, 

Her  teeth  were  as  white  as 

ivory, 
So  white  that  they  dazzled 

one, 
I  have  told  you  more  than 

twenty  times. 


Cette  riviere  quoique  plus 

(large   est   plus   trans- 

parente, 
Ses   dents   etaient  aussi 

blanches  que  I'ivoire. 
Si    blanches    qu'elles 

eblouissaient. 
Plus  de  vingt  f  ois  je  vous 

ai  dit. 


The  roughest  individual, 
He  was  much  dreaded. 


L'individiU  le  plus  brusque. 
II  etait  tres  redoute. 


Her  big  boys  and  girls. 
The  boys  become  less  gaw- 

The  girls  are  rather  less 
rude. 

Not  very  popular  boys  and 
girls. 

Knowing  it,  they  look  un- 
easy. 

To-day  they  looked  happy, 


Ses  grands  gargons  et  ses 

grandes  filles. 
Les  gargons  deviennent 

moins  lourdauds. 
Les    filles   sont    un   peu 

moins  impolies. 
Des  filles  et  des  gargons 

ptu  aimes. 
Le  sachant,  ils  ont  I'air 

inquiet. 
Aujourd'hui    ils   avaient 

I'air  contents. 


His  tact,  his  intelligence, 

Your  nephew  and  niece, 
To  die  for  one's  country, 
Joan  of  Arc  died  for  her 

country. 
You  shall  be  there,  daugh- 
ter, 


Son  tact  (masc),  son  in- 
telligence (fem.). 

Ton  neveu  et  ta  niece. 

Mourir  pour  sa  patrie. 

Jeanne  d'Arc  mourut  pour 
sa  patrie. 

Vous  y  serez,  nm  fille. 


54 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


She  lost  her  husband  and 

her  sister, 
He   lost   his   wife  and   his 

son, 

This  baby,  this  angel. 
This    splendid    man,     this 

hero. 
This  good  woman, 

What  monk  appears  in 
"Romeo  and  Juliet"  ? 

"What  nun  appears  in 
"Measure  for  Measure"? 

What  a  charming  part! 

Two  hundred  or  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  men, 

Eighty  men  and  eighty-two 
women, 

The  Tenth  chapter  of  the 
History  of  James  the 
Second, 


Elle  perdit  son  mari  et 

sa  sceur. 
11    perdit    sa    femme   et 

son  fils. 

Ce  bebe,  cet  ange. 

Get    homme     admirable, 

ce  heros. 
Cette  femme  de  bien. 

Quel  moine  parait  dans 
Romeo  et  Juliette? 

Quelle  religieuse  parait 
dans  Mesure  pour  Me- 
suref 

Quel  role  charmant! 

Deux  cents  a  deux  cent 

cinquante  hommes. 
Qu^tvG-vingts  hommes  et 

quatre  -  vingt  -  deux 

femmes. 
Le  chapitre  dix  de  I'his- 

toire  de  Jacques  Deux. 


^ 

IV 

PRONOUNS 

This   chapter 

will 

deal 

v^ith: 

A. 

Personal    Pronouns 

(pronoms  personnels) 

R. 

Reflexive 

(pronoms  reflechis) 

C. 

Possessive         " 

(pronoms  possessifs) 

D. 

Demonstrative  " 

(pronoms  demonstratifs) 

E. 

Relative            " 

(pronoms  relatifs) 

F. 

Interrogative     " 

(pronoms  interrogatifs) 

G. 

Indefinite         " 

(pronoms  indeHnis) 

A.     PERSONAL  PRONOUNS 

1.  Give  a  list  of  the  personal  pronouns  in  the  nomi- 
native? 


Je 

I 

Tu 

Thou 

II 

He,  it 

Elle 

She,  it 

Nous 

We 

Vous 

You 

lis          r 
Riles     1 

They 

Note. 

1.  These  pronouns  correspond  exactly  to  the  English 
pronouns.  It  should  however  be  noticed  that,  while 
the  French  language,  having  no  neuter  nouns,  has 
no  equivalent  for  it,  there  are  two  French  forms 
translating  they; 

2.  The  inversion  of  the  pronoun,  ex. :  said  he,  dit-il, 
CRIED  THEY,  s'Scricrent-Us,  is  not  only  possible  as  in 
English,  but  is  in  constant  use ; 

3.  Tu,  THOU,  is  in  constant  use  in  friendly  conversation. 


56  FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


2.  Give  a  list  of  the  same  pronouns  in  the  accusative? 


Me 

Me 

Te 

Thee 

Le 

Him,  it 

La 

Her,  it 

Nous 

Us 

Vous 

You- 

Les 

Them 

Note. 

1.  These  pronouns  are  always  placed  before  the  verb 
and  not  after,  as  in  modern  English,  (old  English: 
till  death  us  do  part)  ;  ex. :  I  hear  you,  je  vous  en- 
tends  (I  you  hear)  ;  I  shall  give  it  to  you,  je  vous 
le  donnerai  (I  you  it  shall  give)  ;  however,  the  pro- 
noun follows  the  imperative,  as  in  English ;  ex. :  call 
him  early,  appelez-le  de  bonne  heiire. 

2.  Le  often  represents  a  whole  proposition,  and  plays 
the  part  of  so ;  ex. :  if  you  can  come  early,  do  so, 
si  vous  pouvcs  venir  tot,  faites-le. 

3,  Are  there  any  other  French  personal  pronouns? 

The  tw^o  lists  above  correspond  to  wTiat  English 
grammarians  call  conjunctive  personal  pronouns, 
because  they  are  intimately  joined  to  the  verb. 
Besides  these  there  are  others  called  disjunctwe,  be- 
cause they  are  separated  from  the  verb.  (1) 
They  are : 


Moi 

I,  me,  to  me 

Toi 

Thou,  thee,  to  thee 

Lui 

He,  him,  to  him.  to  her 

Elle 

She,  her 

Nous 

We,  us,  to  us 

Vous 

You,  to  you 

Eux 
Elles 

They,  them,  to  them 

(1)  I'^rench  grammarians  call  the  conjunctive  pronouns  atones  (unstressed) 
because  they  are  pronounced  as  if  they  were  a  part  of  the  verb,  and  the 
disjunctive  pronouns  toniques  (emphasized)  because  they  are  i)ronounced 
more  clearly. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE   CLEAR  57 

These  pronouns  have  no  equivalent  in  English  and 
consequently  ought  to  be  examined  more  closely 
than  the  others. 

They  are  used  a)  exclamatively ;  ex.:  I!  do  such 
A  thing!  inoi!  faire  tine  telle  chose!  —  b)  in 
elliptical  sentences  answering  a  question ;  ex. :  w^ho 

HAS   JUST   RUNG   THE   BELL?   I,    HE,   THEY    (did). 

Qui  lAent  de  sonnerf  moi,  lui,  eux; —  c)  as  geni- 
tives (of)  or  datives  (to)  and  generally  after 
prepositions  (  pour,  for,  avec,  with,  sans,  with- 
out, etc.).  Ex.:  we  were  speaking  of  them, 
nous  parlions  d'eux;  come  with  me,  venez  avec 
moi. 


Note. 


1.  The  emphasis  of  the  pronoun  is  marked  in  French 
by  its  repetition,  ex. :  /  said  no,  moi,  j'ai  dit  non; 
we  DID  NOT  RUN  AWAY,  fious,  fious  ue  ftous  somfttes 
pas  enfuis. 

2.  When  there  are  two  subjects,  one  of  which  is  a 
pronoun,   the   pronoun   is   also   repeated ;    ex. :   your 

SISTER  AND  WE  SHALL  WAIT  HERE,  VOtre  SOeur  Ct  HOUS, 

nous  attcndrons  ici. 


4.  What  is  the  exact  meaning  and  use  of  lui? 

Lui  in  the  nominative  and  the  accusative  refers 
only  to  masc.  nouns;  ex.:    Luif    reculer!    jamais! 

HE !     FALL    BACK  !      NEVER !     aveC   lui,    WITH    HIM  ; 

but,  in  the  dative,  it  refers  to  both  g-enders :  je  lui 

'      •  '    J-rr  ^1      T  f    TO   HIM. 

ecns  means  indifferently  I  am  writing  i 

t     TO  HER. 

It  is  a  serious  mistake  to  confuse  lui  and  le,  la, 
to  say,  for  instance,  je  lui  vois  instead  of  je  le  vois, 
I  SEE  HIM,  or  je  la  parlc  instead  of  je  lui  parte, 

I    SPEAK    TO    HER. 


58  FRENCH   GRAMxMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

Note. 

After  the  two  verbs  entendre,  to  hear,  and  voir,  to  see, 
LUi  is  frequently  used  instead  of  le,  la,  but  in  this 
case  the  object  following  entendre  or  voir  is  always 
found  to  be  accompanied  by  an  adjective  indicating 
admiration  or  contempt;  ex.:  je  lui  ai  vu  faire  des 
exploits  extraordinaires,  i  saw  him  perform  won- 
derful feats;  je  lui  ai  entendu  dire  des  choses 
absurdes,    i  heard  him  say  absurd  things. 

5.  What  is  the  meaning  and  use  of  leur? 

Leur  is  a)  a  possessive  adjective  meaning  their; 
ex. :  leur  livre,  leurs  livres,  their  book,  their 
books;  b)  a  dative  of  the  personal  pronoun  Us, 
they;  ex.:  parley  leur,  speak  to  them. 

6.  What  is  the  meaning  and  use  of  en? 

En  (Latin  inde,  thence)  still  preserves  its  use  as 
an  adverb;  ex.:  fen  mens,  I  come  from  there; 
but  it  is  more  frequently  used  as  a  pronoun  cor- 
responding to  OF  iT^  about  it  ;  ex. :  nous  en  re- 
parlerons,  we  shall  speak  of  it  again  ; 
it  is  also  very  frequently  used  as  a  partitive  cor- 
responding to  some,  any  ;  ex. :  have  you  any 
(tobacco)  ?  —  Yes,  I  have  some  left,  en  avez- 
vousf    oui,  il  m'en  reste; 

the  habit  of  using  en  in  this  connexion  has  gradu- 
ally been  extended  to  many  sentences  which  in 
English  do  not  include  some  of  any  ;  ex. :  we 
HAVE  not  any  (dictionary) — buy  one;  nous  n'en 
avons  pas — achetez-en  un. 

7.  What  is  the  meaning  and  use  of  y? 

Y  (Latin  ibi,  there)  has  also  an  adverbial  use;  ex.: 
j'y  hahite,  I  live  there;  j'y  vais,  I  am  going 
THERE,  and  a  pronominal  use ;  ex. :  j'y  pensais,  I 
was  thinking  of  it. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


59 


B.     REFLEXIVE  PRONOUNS 

1.  What  are  the  reflexive  pronouns  in  French? 

They  are: 


myself 

thyself,  yourself 

himself 

herself 

itself 

one's  self 

ourselves 

yourselves 

themselves 

Ex. :  je  me  brosse,  I  brush  myself  ;    elle  se  lave, 
SHE  WASHES  HERSELF;    se  hlamev  c'est  se  corriger, 

TO  BLAME  one's   SELF   IS  TO   IMPROVE  ONE's  SELF. 


me 
te 


se 

nous 
vous 
se 


Note. 

1.  These  pronouns  are  exactly  the  same  as  the  personal 
pronouns  in  the  accusative  with  the  exception  of  sk 
(Latin  se  or  sese). 

2.  Being  objects  they  are  placed  before  the  verb. 

2.   What    is    the    meaning    and    use    of    moi-meme, 
toumeme,  Im-meme^  etc.? 


Moi-meme 

Toi-meme 

Lui-meme 

Elle-meme 

Soi-meme 

Nous-memes 

Vous-memes 

Eux-memes 

Elle  s-m  ernes 


{ 


myself 

thyself,  yourself 

himself,   itself 

herself,    itself 

one's  self 

ourselves 

yourselves 

themselves 


60  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

o)  These  differ  entirely  from  the  reflexive  pronouns 
inasmuch  as  they  are  never  used  as  objects  except 
dtirectly  and  after  prepositions  like  a,  de,  pour, 
CONTRE,  etc.,  in  which  case  meme,  hemes  is  fre- 
quently omitted ;  ex. :  I  w^ork  for  myself,  je  tra- 
vaille  pour  moi-meme  or  pour  moi;  they  think 
ONLY  OF  themselves^  Us  fie  pensent  qu'a  eux- 
memes,  or  a  eiix;  to  think  of  one's  self,  penser 
a  soi  (-meme) ; 

b)  they  are  frequently  used  as  subjects  in  apposition, 
1.  in  cases  in  which  they  correspond  to  myself, 
thyself,  etc.;  ex.:  I  shall  write  this  myself, 
j'ecrirai  ceci  moi-meme;  2.  in  cases  in  which  they 
correspond  to  I  myself,  he  himself,  etc.,  or  to 
even  I,  EVEN  he,  etc. ;  ex. :  moi-meme  feus  peur, 

even      I      WAS      FRIGHTENED,      Or      I      MYSELF      WAS 
FRIGHTENED. 

The  meaning  would  be  the  same  if  one  should  say: 
meme  moi,  feus  peur. 

C.     POSSESSIVE  PRONOUNS 

1.  What  are  the   possessive  pronouns   that  refer  to 
only  one  person? 

They  are: 

IN  English  :  in  French  : 

mine  le  mien,  lamienne  (sing) 

les  miens,  les  miennes  (pi.) 

thine  le  tien,  la  tienne  (sing.) 

les  Hens,  les  tiennes  (pi.) 

his,  hers,  its  own,  one's  le  sien,  la  siemie  (sing.) 

lessiens,  les  sienncs  (pi.) 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  61 


Note. 

These  pronouns  agree  with  the  object  possessed  (which 
they  represent)  and  not,  as  in  English,  with  the 
possessor.  Speaking  of  a  dog,  the  phrases  he  lost 
his  and  she  lost  hers  will  both  be  translated  bv 
il  perdit  le  sien,  elle  perdit  le  sicn,  because  the  pro- 
noun refers  to  a  masc.  sing.,  chien. 


2.  What   are   the   possessive   pronouns   that  refer  to 
several  persons? 

They  are : 

IN  English  :  in  French  : 

ours  le  notre,  la  notre  (sing.) 

les  notre s  (pi.) 

yours  le  voire,  la  voire  (sing.) 

les  votres  (pi.) 

theirs  le  leur,   la  leur  (sing.) 

les  leurs  (pi.) 


Note. 


1.  These  pronouns  agree  with  the  object  possessed:  we 
ATE  OURS  is  translated  by  nous  avons  mange  le 
notre,  if  the  subject  is  un  gateau  (a  cake)  —  nous 
avons  niangf:  In  notre.  if  it  is  une  tarte  (a  pie)  — 
nous  avons  mange  les  notres,  if  it  is  several  gateaux 
or  several  tartes; 

2.  notice  that  notre  (poss.  adj.)  has  no  circumflex,  but 
LE  NOTRE  (poss.  pron.)  has  one; 

3.  notice,  above  all,  that  possessive  pronouns  are  always 
preceded  by  le,  la,  les. 


3.  What  is  the  French  for  it  is  mine,  it  is  ours,  etc. 

These  phrases  are  translated  by  c'esi  a  moi,  c'est 
a  nous,  etc.,  using  the  personal  instead  of  the 
possessive    pronoun;    ex.:    whose   ball  is  this? 


62  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


IT  Js  NOT  MINE,  I  THINK  IT  IS  Tom's ;  ii  qui  est 
cette  hallef  ce  n'est  pas  a  moi,  je  crois  que  c'est  a 
Tom. 


Note. 


In    the   plural,    speaking   of   stamps,    for   instance,    we 
should  say:    Us  sont  a  Tom,  rather  than  c'est  a  Tom. 


4.  What  is  the  meaning  of  celui  de,  celle  de,  etc.? 

These  possessives  correspond  to  both  that  of, 
THOSE  OF,  and  to  the  possessive  case ;  ex. :  it  is 
Tom's  (or  it  is  that  of  Tom)  is  translated  by  c'est 
celui  or  c'est  celle  de  Tom. 


D.     DEMONSTRATIVE   PRONOUNS 

1.  What  is  the  meaning  and  use  of  celui-ci,  celui-la? 

Sing.  Celui-ci  (masc),  celle-ci  (fern.) 

PI.  Ceux-ci  (masc),  cellcs-ci  (fern.) 

and     Sing.  Celui-la  (masc),  cellc-la  (fern.) 

PI.  Ceux-la  (masc),  celles-la  (fern.) 

These  demonstratives  correspond  to  this,  that, 
THOSE  (speaking  of  thing*s)  and  to  this  one,  that 

ONE,  or  to  THE  FORMER,     THE  LATTER,    (speaking  of 

people);  ex.:  (speaking  of  pens)  I  prefer  these, 
faime  mieux  celles-ci;  (speaking  of  soldiers)  I 
KNOW  that  one,  je  connais  celui-la;  (speaking  of 
Grant  and  Lee)  the  former  was  a  great  soldier, 

THE     latter     a     deep     STRATEGIST,     Celui-Ul    fut     UH 

grand  soldat,  celui-ci  un  pro  fond  stratege. 


FR'ENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  63 

2.  What  is  the  meaning  and  use  of  celui  qui,  celle 
qui,  etc.? 

Sing.  Celid  qui  (masc.)     celle  qui  (fern.) 
PJ.       Ceux  qui  (masc.)     celles  qui  (fern.) 

are  said  both  of  persons  and  things  and  correspond 

to   HE   WHO^   THAT   WHICH^   and  THE  ONE  WHO,   THE 

ONE  which;  ex.:  (speaking  generally)  He  who 
RUNS  CAN  READ,  ccliii  qui  couvt  peut  lire:  (speak- 
ing of  certain  persons  in  particular)  I  know  the 
ONES  WHO  STAND  THERE,  je  cofinais  ccux  qui  sont 
la  dehout;  who  is  the  one  who  is  running? 
qui  est  celui  qui  court? 


Note. 


Celui  qui  is  abbreviated  as  qui  in  proverbial  sentences, 
ex. :   qui  dort  dine,  he  who  sleeps  needs  no  dinner. 


3.  What  is  the  meaning  of  ceci,  cela? 

These  demonstratives,  abbreviated  from  celui-ci, 
celui-la,  correspond  to  this,  that;  ex.:  remem- 
ber Tiiis^  rappelcz-vous  ccci;  never  say  a  word 
OF  THAT,    ne  dites  mot  de  cela. 


Note. 


^A  is  a  colloquial  contraction  of  cela;   ex.:  tell  us 
THAT,  dites-nous  ca. 


4.  What  is  the  meaning  and  use  of  ce? 

Ce  or  c'   (before  vowels)   corresponds  to  it;  ex.: 
IT  IS  NOT  true,  ce  n'est  pas  vrai;  it  is  his  wit, 

(it    is)     NOT    his    ideas    THAT    I    ENJOY    IN    ShAW, 

c'esf  son  esprif,  ce  ne  sont  pas  ses  idees  que  faime 
ches  Shazv. 


64  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


Note. 

1.  Ce  is  replaced  by  il  when  que  or  de  follows; 
ex.:  il  est  vrai  que:  it  is  true  that; 

2.  c'est  is  used  where  English  has  he  is,  she  is.  re- 
ferring to  a  person  already  mentioned ;  ex. :  who  is 
THIS  GIRL?  she  IS  A  French  GIRL ;  qui  est  cette 
jeune  Ullef    c'est  une  frangaise. 

3.  SuR  CE  means  sur  cela,  upon  this,  whereupon ;  ex. : 
whereupon  he  said  good-bye  :  sur  ce  il  Ht  scs  adieux. 

5.  What  is  the  meaning  and  use  of  ce  qui,  ce  que? 

Ce  qui,  ce  que  correspond  to  both  what  and 
WHICH ;  ex. :  do  not  believe  what  he  says,  ne 
croyez  pas  ce  qu'il  dit;  you  believe  everybody, 
WHICH  IS  AN  EXCESS,  vous  croyez  tout  le  monde, 
Ce  qui  est  exagere. 

E.    RELATIVE  PRONOUNS 

The   relative  pronouns   in  English  are: 

N.  who  which 

G.  whose  of  which 

D.  to  whom  to  which 

A.  whom  which 

1.  What  are  the  relative  pronouns  in  French? 

There  are  two  sets  of  relative  pronouns  in  French. 

a)     Nom.     qui,    who,   which. 

Gen.       de  qui,    whose,  of   whom,  of  which. 

Dat.       a  qui,    to  whom,  to  A\rhich. 

Ace        que   (with  a  verb)  1       .  ... 

.    ;    .  ,  .   .    r  whom,  which,. 

qui    (with  a  preposit.)  J 

This  set  is  used  in  the  plural  as  well  as  in  the 

singular.   Ex. :  the  doctor  who  looked  after  mf, 

le  medecin  qui  me  soignait;    A  play   which   df.- 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  65 

LIGHTED  ME,  uiie  piccc  qiii  m'a  ram;  the  singers 
WHOM  WE  HEARD,  les  chauteurs  que  nous  entendions ; 

THE    TEACHER    WITH     WHOM     I     STUDIED,     le    llimtre 

(tvec  qui  foi  travaille. 

Note. 

De  qui  is  frequently  replaced  by  dont,  corresponding,' 
to  whose  but  followed  by  the  article;  ex.:  an  att- 
LETE  WHOSE  POWERFUL  BODY,  uu  athlete  dofit  le  covins 
robust  e... 

Singular  : 
b)     N.   lequel    (masc),      laquelle    (fern.)    who,   which 
G.  duqucl  (masc),     de  laquelle  (fem.)-<    -       ,  .  , 

D.  auquel  (masc),     a  laquelle  (fem.)   "i  ,  .  , 

A.  lequel    (masc),  laquelle  (fem.)    whom,   which 

Plural : 
N.  les  quels  (masc),  les  quelles  (fem.)  who,  which 
G.  des quels  (masc.)  des quelles  (iem.)   '{    ,       -  .  , 

D.  aiix  quels  (masc)  aux  quelles  (fem.)  i 

A.  les  quels  (masc)  les  quelles (i^m..)  whom,  which 
Ex. :  le  diner  auquel  je  fais  allusion,  the  dinner 
TO  WHICH  I  AM  referring;  la  voiture  dans  la- 
quelle   nous    sommes    venus,    the    carriage    in 

WHICH    WE   DUbVE   HERE. 

Note. 

Lequel,  lesquels  is  hardly  used  except  in  the  genitive, 
the  dative  (le  diner  auquel),  and  the  accusative  after 
a  preposition  (/a  voiture  dans  laquelle,)  but  it  should 
always  be  used  in  these  cases  when  referring  to 
animals  or  things. 


66  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

2.  Decline  the  relative  pronouns  as  their  usage  can  be 
inferred  from  the  two  declensions  above. 

Singular : 

Nom.  Qui  (persons  and  things) 
Gen.    Dont,  de  qui  (persons)  ;  dont,  duquel  (things) 
Dat     A  qui,  auquel  (persons)  ;  auquel,  (things) 
Ace.     Que  (persons  and  things)  with  a  verb. 

Qui  (persons) ;  lequel,  laquelle  (things)  with 
a  preposition. 

Plural : 

Nom.  Qui  (persons  and  things) 

Gen.    De  qui,  dont  (persons  and  things)  ;  dont,  des- 

quels  (things). 
Dat.     A  qui,  auxquels  (pers.  and  things^  ;  auxquels 

(things). 
Ace.     Que  (pers.  and  things)  with  verb. 

Qui  (persons)  ;  les  quels    (things)    with    a 

preposition. 


Note. 


After  CE  and   rien,   the   relative   is   quoi  ;    ex. :  what 

I   WAS  THINKING  OF,   ce   0,   quoi  je   pensais;  there 

WAS     NOTHING    I    COULD     MAKE    A     FIRE    WITH,  il    tl'y 

avait  rien  avec  quoi  je  pouvais  faire  du  feu. 


F.     INTERROGATIVE  PRONOUNS 

1 .  What  interrogative  pronouns  are  used  in  speaking 
of  persons? 

Nom.    Qui?    who? 
Gen.     De   qidf     of   whom? 
Dat.     A      quif     to  whom? 
Ace.     Quif     whom? 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  67 

Ex.:    Qui  est  la?    who  is  there?    a  qui  ecrivez- 

VOUSf     TO    WHOM      ARE    YOU    WRITING?     qui     SOUfieS 
VOUSf     WHOM    ARE    YOU    RINGING    UP? 

Note. 

Instead  of  qui  in  the  nom.  colloquial  French  often  uses 
QUI   EST-CE  QUI?    cx. :   QUI  est-cc  qui  vous  appellef 

WHO    CALLS    YOU? 

2.  What  are  the  interrogative  pronouns  in  other  cases? 

Nom.    Quoif    que?    qu'est-ce  qui?    what? 

Gen.       De  quoi?    of  what? 

Dat.       A  quoi?   to  what? 

Ace.       Que?  qu'est  ce  que?  what? 

Ex.:  WHAT?    WHAT  ARE  YOU  SAYING?    quoi?  que 

dites-vous?  or  qu'est-ce  que  vous  diies?    what  do 

YOU  WANT?    que  voulez-vous  or  qu'est-ce  que  vous 

VOuleZ?     WHAT    HAS    HAPPENED   TO    YOU?     que   VOUS 

est-il  arrive? 

3.  What   is   to    be   noticed   about   the  translation  of 

what  in  the  nominative? 

What  ?  by  itself  is  translated,  by  QUOi  ?,  Followed  by 
a  preposition  it  is  translated  by  QUE.^  or  by  qu'est-ce 
qui?   Ex.:  what?     what  is  happening?   quoi? 
qu*  {que)   arrive-t-il?    or  qu'est-ce  qui  arrive? 

4.  Is  it  possible  to   translate    which?  accurately   into 

French? 

Which?  by  itself  is  translated  by  lequel?  les- 
QUELs;  ex.:  (speaking  of  horses)  which  will 
YOU  RiDE.^  lequel  voulcz-vous  monter? 
Followed  by  a  noun  it  can  only  be  translated  by 
a  circumlocution:  which  mare?  laquelle  {des 
deux  juments?) 


68  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

G.     INDEFINITE    PRONOUNS 

1.  What  are  the  indefinite  pronouns  in  French? 

They  are: 

on,  one  chacun,  every,  each 

quelqu'un,  somebody  plusieurs,  several,  some 

personne,  nobody  certains,  certain,  some 

quelque  chose,  something  tel,  such 

rUn,  nothing  tout,  all,  the  whole 

aucun,  nul,  no  quiconque,    whoever 

un,  one  quoi  que,  whatever 
autre,  other 


2.  Which   indefinite  pronoun  is  the   most  frequently 
used  in  French? 

It  is  ON  (Lat.  homo,  man)  which  corresponds  not 
only  to  ONE,  (ex.:  one  often  thinks,  on  croit 
souvent)  but  also  corresponds  to: 

a)  A  MAN,  WE,  PEOPLE,  IT  IS  (said,  related,  etc.) ; 
ex. :  WE  or  people  say  wrongly,  on  dit  a  tort; 

b)  SOMEBODY,  they;  ex.:  somebody  is  knocking,  on 
frappc;  they  work  in  the  Capitol,  on  travaille 
au  Capitole; 

c)  you;  ex.:  you  start  from  Pennsylvania  sta- 
tion, on  part  de  la  garc  de  Pensylvanic ; 

d)  passive  constructions;  ex.:  boys  are  supposed 
to  notice  nothing,  on  imagine  que  les  gargons 
ne  remarquent  rien. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  69 

3.  What   difference  is  there  between   personne   and 
une  personne? 

Personne  means  nobody,  while  une  personne 
means  somebody,  some  person  ;  ex. :  une  personne 
est  venue,  somebody  came. 

The  word  person  is  followed  in  English  by  he,  but 
une  personne  in  French  is  feminine  even  when  the 
speaker  means  a  man. 

Idiom.  I  don't  know  anybody  wiser  is  translated : 
je  ne  connais  personne  de  plus  sage,  (the  French 
adds  de). 


4.  What  is  the  meaning  of  plusieurs? 

Plusieurs  in  modern  French  never  means  many 
but  several,  i.e.  from  three  to  seven  or  eight ;  ex. : 
plusieurs  fois,  several  times. 

5.  What  is  the  meaning  and  use  of  rien? 

Rien  (lat.  rem,  thing)  originally  meant  something, 
anything.  It  has  preserved  this  meaning  in  sen- 
tences like:  Avez-vous  jamais  vu  rien  de  plus  heau? 

DID  you   ever   see  ANYTHING   MORE   BEAUTIFUL? 

In  most  cases,  however,  it  means  nothing.  It 
should  be  placed  in  simple  tenses  after  the  verb ;  ex. : 
je  ne  vois  rien,  I  see  nothing;  in  compound  tenses 
between  the  auxiliary  and  the  past  participle;  ex.: 
je  n'ai  rien  entendu,  I  heard  nothing. 

Notice  in  rien  de  plus  heau  the  addition  of  de  after 
rien. 


70 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Resume 
What  rules  are  exemplified  in  the  following? 


{ 


Personal  Pronouns  : 

lis  chantent, 
Ellcs  chantent, 
Tu  paries  trop, 
"Bien!"  dira-t-il, 
Maman  nous  appelle, 
Je  te  le  rappellerai, 

Si  vous  pouvez  m'aider 

faites  le 
pensez-y 
souvenez-vous  en 


Toi!  tu  es  un  brave! 
"Qui  viendra  avec  moi?" — 

Charles  et  toi,  vous  resterez 

Ltd  est  un  sot, 

Je    lui    ai    dit    que    j'irais 

avec  lui, 
Je    lui    ai    dit    que    j'irais 

avec  elle^ 

Qui  leur  a  pris  leur  chien? 

J'y   reflechirai   et   vous   en 
ecrirai. 

Du  bon  sens  !  II  n'en  a  pas ! 


They  sing. 

You  speak  too  much. 
"Right!"  he  will  say. 
Mother  calls  us. 
I /shall  remind  you  of  it. 

If  you  can  help  me 

do  so,  do  it. 
think  of  it. 
remember  it. 

You  are  a  brave  man! 
Who  is  coming  w^ith  me? 

— I  am. 
You  and  Charles  will  stay. 

He  is  a  fool. 

I   told   him    I   would   go 

with  him. 
I   told   her   I   would   go 

with  her. 

Who  stole  their  dog  from 
them? 

I   will    think    it    over   and 
write  you  about  it. 

Sense!    He  has  none! 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


71 


Boston  !     J' en    arrive !     /'  y 
etais  il  y  a  six  heures! 

Reflexive : 
Va  te  brosser, 
Elle  se-  brosse, 
II  est  temps  de  se  brosser, 


Boston !  I  have  just  ar- 
rived from  there!  I 
was  there  six  hours  ago. 


Go  and  brush  yourself. 
She  is  brushing  herself. 
Nov^  is  the  time  to  brush 
one's  self. 


Fais  cela  toi-meme, 
Tu  travailles  pour  toi, 
Ta  mere  elle-meme  le  sait, 

Possessive: 
II  a  fini  le  sien  (devoir), 
Elle  a  fini  le  sien  (de'voir), 


Avez-vous  fini  les  votresf 

(devoirs), 
La    salle   de   bains    sera    a 

vous,  I'armoire  ()  moi, 

N'etait  elle  pas  a  Louise? 
Non,    celle    de    Louise   est 
dans  I'autre  chambre, 

Demonstrative  : 

Essayez  celui-ci  (rasoir), 
Celui-ci  (Jackson)  etait  de- 
mocrate,  celui-la  (Hamil- 
ton)  federaliste, 


Do  that  yourself. 
You  v^ork  for  yourself. 
Even  your  mother  knows 
it. 


He  has  finished  his  (task). 
She  has   finished  hers 
(task). 

Have  you  finished  yours  ? 

(tasks). 
The   bath   room   will   be 

yours,  the  closet  mine. 

Was  it  not  Louise's? 
No,   Louise's   is   in  the 
other  room. 


Try  this  one   (razor). 

The  latter  ( Jackson  "i  was 
a  Democrat,  the  former 
(Hamilton)  a  Federal- 


72 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


Ceux  qui  arriveront  en  re- 
tard seront  punis, 

Celui  que  je  vois  dans  le 
gymnase, 

Qui  m'aime  me  suive, 

Montrez  moi  cela, 
Regardez  (moi)  gd! 


Those  who  come  late  will 

be  punished. 
The  one  I  see  over  there 

in  the  gymnasium. 
(Let  him)  who  loves  me 

follow  me. 
Let  me  see  that. 
Just  look  at  that! 


Ce  qu'il  aime  ce  sont  ses 

aises, 
Qui   etait   Rachel?    Cetait 

une  actrice  celebre, 


What  he  loves  is  his  own 

comfort. 
Who  was  Rachel?     She 

was  a  famous  actress. 


II  ne  dit  que  ce  qu'il  veut 
dire. 


He   only    says    what   he 
wants  to  say. 


Relative  : 

Le  Frangais  avec  qui  je 
correspondaisr 

La  plume  avec   laquelle 

j'ecrivais, 
Les  lettres  que  je  gardais, 

Les  choses  dont  nous  par- 
lions, 

Ce  sur  quoi  je  vous  con- 
suite, 


The    Frenchman    with 
whom  I  used  to  cor- 
respond. 

The  pen   with   which   I 
used  to  write. 

The    letters    I    used    to 
keep. 

The  subjects  about  which 
we  used  to  talk. 

What  I  want  your  advice 
about. 


Interrogative: 

Qui  va  la?    Qui  cherchez- 
vous? 


Who  goes  there?  Whom 
are  you  seeking? 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


73 


Que  lisez-vous?    Qu'cst-ce 

qui  vous  plait? 
A     quoi    vous     interessez- 

vous  ? 
"Johnson  m'a  ecrit*'— "Ah! 

Lequel  des  Johnson?" 


What  do  you  read  ?  What 
pleases  you? 

What  do  you  take  an  in- 
terest in? 

"Johnson  has  written  me" 
—"Oh!  Which  John- 
son?" 


Indefinite: 

On  parle  toujours  trop, 

On  Sonne, 

On  chante  en  haut, 
On  prend  a  gauche, 
On  vous  (lira  que. .  . 


One  always  says  too  much. 
Someone  is  ringing. 
They  are  singing  upstairs. 
You  turn  to  the  left. 
You  will  be  told  that... 


Est-ce  qu'il  n'est  venu  per- 

sonnef 
Si,  une  personne  est  venue, 
Elle    a    dit    qu'elle    revien- 

drait, 
11  n'y  a  personne  de  plus 

bete, 
Je  ne  me  rappelle  rien, 
Je  ne  me  suis  rien  rappele, 
Ne  vous  rappelez-vous  rien 

(/'autre  ? 


Has  no  one  come? 

Yes,  somebody  did  call. 
He    said  he   would   call 

again. 
Nobody  is  more  stupid. 

I  remember  nothing. 
I  remembered  nothing. 
Don't  you  remember  any- 
thing else  ? 


V 
VERBS 

Plan  of  this  chapter  : 

A.     Introductory   remarks   on   French  verbs. 

B.  French  conjugations. 

C.  Differences  in  the  use  of  the  tenses  in  French  and 
in  Enghsh  —  Interrogation  —  Negation. 

D.  Classes   of   Verbs    (passive,   intransitive,   reflexive, 
reciprocal,  impersonal,  defective.) 


A.     INTRODUCTORY  REMARKS  ON  FRENCH 
VERBS 

1 .  Are  French  verbs  more  difficult  than  English  verbs? 

The  conjugation  of  the  English  verb  is  of  unpar- 
alleled simplicity,  the  infinitive  form  undergoing  only 
five  changes  (ex. :  to  walk,  walking,  walked,  thou 
walkest,  he  walks,  thou  walkedst),  and  the  con- 
sequence is  that  the  conjugation  of  verbs  in  any 
other  language  is  sure  to  appear  complicated. 

2.  What  are  the  chief  differences  between  the  French 

verb  and  the  English  verb? 

a)  Each  i)erson  has  its  own  particular  ending  in 
French,  whereas  in  English  the  person  is  indicated 
only  by  the  pronoun.    For  instance  the  word  walk 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  75 

has  no  definite  meaning  unless  it  is  prefixed  by  I, 
WE,  YOU,  THEY,  whereas  in  French  the  personal 
endings  vary.    Ex. : 

I    walk  je  march  e 

We  walk  nous  march  ons 

You  walk  vous  march  cz 

They  walk  Us  march  ent 

These  personal  endings  have  been  bequeathed  to 
the  French  language  by  the  Latin  conjugation; 
they  no  doubt  lend  to  the  language  more  accuracy, 
variety,  and  harmony ; 

h)  there  is  only  one  conjugation  in  English,  but 
there  are  four  in  French,  as  there  were 
four  in  Latin:  aimer  (to  love),  finir  (to 
finish),  RECEvoiR  (to  receive),  rendre  (to  render) 
are  all  conjugated  according  to  different  models 
because  their  endings  (er,  ir,  oir,  re)  are  different; 

c)  there  are  slight  differences  also  between  the  tenses 
in  French  and  in  English,  the  advantage  being  in 
favor  sometimes  of  one,  sometimes  of  the  other 
language : 

L  The  present  progressive  (I  am  walking)  and 
the  emphatic  present  (I  do  walk),  so  express- 
ive in  English,  do  not  exist  in  French :  je  marchc 
is  the  only  form; 

2.  I  WALKED  or  I  WAS  WALKING  cau  be  translated 
into  French  by:  je  marchais  (imperfect),  je 
marchai,  (simple  past),  or  j'ai  marche  (com- 
pound past)  ;  that  is  to  say,  the  English  language 
employs  only  two  forms  for  the  imperfect  and 


Id  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


the  simple  past,  and  frequently  uses  one  of  them 
to  translate  the  compound  past  or  even  the 
pluperfect  {f avals  marche)  ;  the  consequence  is 
that  French  is  clearer; 

3.  The  French  language  possesses  a  very  convenient 
tense,  viz.,  the  past  anterior,  translated  into  En- 
glish by  the  pluperfect  but  indicating  that  the 
action  mentioned  came  before  another ;  ex. :  after 
I  HAD  EATEN  I  SLEPT^  aprcs  qui  feusjuonge,  je 
dormis;  |5t>A  ^('■^. 

4.  the  French  language  lacks  our  very  expressive 
double  future  (I  shall  walk,   I  will  walk)  ; 

5.  the  imperative  in  French  has  only  three  persons 
and  offers  no  real  equivalent  for  let  me  walk  ; 

6.  the  subjunctive  in  French  has  four  tenses,  in- 
stead of  one,  and  is  used  not  only  in  every  case 
in  which  it  is  used  in  English  but  in  many  others 
in  which  the  Eng'lish  language  uses  the  past 
or  the  future:  additional  clarity  and  elegance 
are  the  result. 


B.    FRENCH  CONJUGATIONS 

Division  of  this  Section  : 

A)  Preliminary. 

B)  Conjugation  of  Avoir  (to  have)  and  Eire  (to  be). 

C)  Conjugation  of  verbs  in  er,  ir,  oir,  and  re,  with 

remarks  on  irregular  verbs  in  frequent  use. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  n 

A.    PRELIMINARY 

1.  Are  there   any   means  of   simplifying  French  con- 
jugations? 

Since  there  is  a  special  ending  to  each  person  of 
every  tense,  seventeen  tenses  to  each  verb,  and 
four  different  conjugations,  the  inference  might 
be  that  there  are  hundreds  of  forms  to  be  learnt 
in  order  to  conjugate  French  verbs. 
But  it  is  not  so,  and  it  is  much  easier  to  conjugate  a 
French  verb  than  a   Latin  verb. 

1.  The  endings  of  each  tense  in  the  plural  of  each 
conjugation  are — w^ith  a  very  noticeable  difference 
in  the  simple  past  {nous  aimdmes,  nous  Unimes, 
nous  regumes,  nous  rendhnes) — always  ons,  ez, 
ENT,  {nous  aimons,  vous  aimez.  Us  aiment),  so  that 
we  can  be  sure  of  three  endings  in  six  in  every 
possible  verb  by  merely  remembering  ons,  ez,  ent  ; 

2.  the  endings  peculiar  to  each  tense,  (for  instance 
Ais  in  the  imperfect,  rai  in  the  future,  rais  in  the 
conditional),  are,  v^ith  the  exception  of  the  past, 
the  same  in  every  conjugation,  so  that  the  moment 
we  know  one  verb,  we  know  the  temporal  endings 
(or  particular  tense  endings)  of  all; 

3.  as  irregular  verbs  are  either  in  very  frequent  use 
or  are,  on  the  contrary,  mere  grammatical  curiosities 
which  even  the  French  let  alone,  they  are  easily 
learnt ; 

4.  the  conclusion  is  that  French  verbs  are  infinitely 
less  difficult  than  some  persons  insist  they  are. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR: 


2.  What   is    the   best    method    for    learning    French 
verbs? 

French  verbs  are  quickly  learned,  not  by  parrot- 
like repetition,  but  1.  by  careful  examination  of 
their  personal  and  temporal  endings,  (noticing  nu- 
merous resemblances  and  occasional  differences), 
and  2.  by  easy  but  frequent  exercises  on  a  variety 
of  verbs  suggested  by  another  person;  half  an 
hour's  real  attention  at  the  outset  will  secure  re- 
sults which  seem  marvelous  only  to  the  thoughtless. 


3.  What    are    the    personal    endings   in    the   present 
indicative? 

There  are  four  conjugations : 

1.  Verbs  the  infinitive  of  which  ends  in  er;  ex. :  aimer 

2 IR ;   ex. :  finir 

3 oiR ;  ex. :  recevoir 

4 RE :  ex. :  rendre 


Present    Indicative 

Aimer  :  Finir  : 

J 'aim.  e  Je  iin  is 

Tu  aim  es  Tu  fin  is 

II  aim  e  U  fin  it 

Nous  aim  ons  Nous  fin  issons 

Vons  aim  ez  Vous  fin  issez 

Us  aim  ent  Us  fin  issent 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  79 

Recevoir  :  Rendre  : 

Je  reg  ois  Je  rend  s 

Tu  rcg  ois  Tu  rend  s 

II  reg  oit  II  rend 

Nous  recev  ons  Nous  rend  ons 

Vous  recev  ez  Vous  rend  ez 

lis  regoiv  ent  lis  rend  ent 

The  syllables  aim,  fin,  reg,  rend  are  called  the  rad- 
ical of  the  verbs  aim  er,  fin  ir,  rec  evoir,  and 
REND  RE,  that  is  to  say  the  root  syllable  which 
does  not  change  in  the  conjugation.  The  syllables 
added  to  the  radical  are  called  terminations  or 
endings. 

If  we  examine  the  terminations  in  the  present 
indicative  of  the  four  verbs  above  we  shall  find : 

1.  that  in  the  plural  the  terminations  ons,  ez, 
ENT,  are  the  same  in  the  four  conjugations : 

2.  that  in  the  singular,  a)  the  ending  of  the  first 
person  is  s  except  in  aimer;  b)  the  ending  of  the 
second  is  s  in  all  four  conjugations;  c)  the  end- 
ing of  the  third  is  t  or  d  except  in  aimer;  so  that 
after  all  we  need  only  observe  that  one  form,  viz. 
aime  in  j'aime  and  il  aime,  differs  from  the  rest. 
Now  it  is  all  important  to  remember : 

1.  as  stated  above,  that  the  endings  ons,  ez,  ent 
are  found  in  the  plural  of  each  tense  in  every 
conljugation; 

2.  that  s  in  the  second  person  singular  is  found  in 
every  tense  of  each  conjugation ; 

3.  that  T  or  D  in  the  third  person  singular  is  found 
in  all  conjugations  but  the  first,  except  in  the 
future  and  the  imperative  and  subjunctive. 


80 FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

4.  What  are  the  temporal  (or  tense)  endings  in  each 
conjugation? 

The  answer  to  this  question  should  be  preceded 
by  observing  the  distinction  between  simple  and 
compound  tenses :  simple  tenses  are  those  in  which 
the  verb  consists  of  only  one  word ;  ex. :  pres.  faime, 
imp.  j'aimais,  simple  past,  j'aimai;  compound 
tenses  consist  of  an  auxiliary  {avoir,  to  have  or 
etre,  to  be)  followed  by  the  past  part,  of  the 
verb ;  ex. :  compound  past,  j'ai  aime,  future  an- 
terior, j'aurai  aime; 

it  being  clear  then  that  compound  tenses  always 
end  with  a  past  part,  we  need  only  give  our  atten- 
tion to  simple  tenses  in  the  following  table: 

Terminations  of  simple  tenses  in 

1.  Aimer,  2.  Finir, 

Infinitive  er.  ir. 

Pres.  Part.  aim  ant  iiniss  ant 

Past.  Part.  aim  e  fin  i 

Indie.  Pres.  j'aim  e  je  fin  is 

"       Imperfect  faim  ais  je  finiss  ais 

"      Simple  Past  faim  ai  je  fin  is 

"         "     Future  faime  rai  je  Uni  rai 

Conditional  j'aime  rais  je  fini  rais 

Imperative  Aim  e^  'Fin  is 

Subj.  Present  que  j'aim  e  que  je  finiss  e 

"      In^erfect  que  j'aimass  e         que  je  finiss  e 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


81 


Infinitive 

Pres.  Part. 

Past.  Part. 

Indie.  Pres. 
"       Imperfect 
"      Simple  Past 
"     Future 

Conditional 

Imperative 

Subj.  Present 
"      Imperfect 


3.  Recevoir, 
oir. 
recev  ant 
reg  u 
je  reg  ois 
je  recev  ais 
je  reg  lis 
je  recev  rat 
je  recev  rats 
Reg  ois 

que  je  regoiv  e 
que  je  regiiss  e 


4.  Rendre, 
re. 
rend  ant 
rend  u 
je  rend  s 
je  rend  ais 
je  rend  is 
je  rend  rai 
je  rend  rais 
Rend  s 
que  je  rend  e 
que  je  rendiss  e 


Note. 


1.  The  termination  of  the  pres.  part,  is  always  ant.— 

—  —  —        imperfect    —      —  ais 

—  — ^  —        future  —  —  RAI 

—  —  —        conditional —      —  rats 

—  —  —        subj.  pres.  —  —  e...- 

—  —  —        subj.  imperf.  —  se 

2.  The  termination  of  the  present  indie,  of  the  simple 
past,  and  of  the  imperative  is  s,  except  in  aimer: 

The  conclusion  is  that  the  terminations  of  all  simple 
tenses,  except  the  infinitive  and  past  part.,  are  practi- 
cally the  same  in  every  conjugation  and  can  be  learnt 
in  a  moment. 


Exercise 


1.  To  what  conjugation  do  the  following  verbs  belong? 

[  parler,  to  speak  venir^  to  come 

^  courir,  to  run.  lire,  to  read 


^  pourvoir,  to  provide 
l\tendre,  to  stretch 


croire,  to  believe 
decev.oir,  to  disappoin; 


82 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


2.  What  should    be    the    personal    pronoun   with  the 
following  verbs? 


parlons 

,     parlies 

parleront 

parleriez 

parlez 

parlaient 

parlerons 

parleraient 

parlent 

parlions 

parlerez 

parierions 

courons^ 

couraient 

courres 

courraient 

coures 

courhns 

courront 

courriez 

courent 

coiiriez 

courrons 

courrions 

tendons 

tendies 

tendrons 

tendriez 

tendes 

tendaient 

tendront 

tendrions 

tendent 

tendions 

tendrez 

tendraient 

3.  In  what  tense  are  the  following  verbs? 


decev  ant 
pari  ant 
tend  ant 
je  pari  ais 
je  decev  ais 
je  tend  ais 
je  di  rai 
je  croi  rai 
je  tend  rai 


je  parle  rais 
je  viend  rais 
je  li  rats 
que  je  vienn  e 
que  je  lis  e 
que  je  tend  e 
que  je  inns  se 
que  je  lus  se 
que  je  criis  se 


je  lir  ai 
je  li  sais 
que  je  lus  se 
je  croir  ais 
je  cour  rai 
je  decev  ais 
je  viend  rai 
je  ven  ais 
je  viend  rais 


What    is    the    formation    or    derivation  of  tenses   in 
French? 

The  principal  tenses  in  French  are: 

1.  The  present  infinitive;  ex.:  aimer; 

add  AI  (1),  you  have  the  future;  ex.:    j'aimerai; 
AIS,  you  have  the  conditional ;  ex. :  j'aimerais; 


(1)  Medieval  French  wrote  j' aimer  an  (i.e.  j'ai  a  aimer)  j'ecrire  ai  (i.e.  j'ai 
d  ecrire)  which  corresponded  to  the  low  Latin  future  amare  habeo,  scribere 
habeo,    I  have  to  love  I   have  to  write. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  S3 

2.  the  present  participle;  ex.:  aim  ant; 
substitute  ons  for  ant  you  have  the  indie,  pres. 
plural  and  the  imperat.   plural;  ex.:       aim  ons; 
substitute  ais  for  ant;  you  have  the  imperfect; 

ex. :  faim  ais; 
substitute  e  for  ant;  you  have  the  subj.  pres.; 
ex. :  que  j'aim  e; 

3.  the  present  indicative;  ex.:  faime; 
similar  to  the  imperat.  sing. ;  ex. :  aime; 

4.  the  simple  past  in  the  second  pers. ;  ex. :  tu  aim  as; 
add  SE_,  you  have  the  subj.  imp.,  que  j'aimas  <se; 

5.  the  past  participle ;  ex. :  aime,  which  terminates 
all  compound  tenses,  viz.  compound  past,  pluper- 
fect, past  anterior,  future  anterior,  conditional 
past,  subjunctive  past,  and  subjunctive  pluperfect. 

These  principal  tenses  ought  to  be  particularly  no- 
ticed in  studying  the  irregular  verbs. 


Auxiliaries:  avoir,  TO  have,  and  etre,  to  be. 

1.  What  auxiliaries  are  used  in  conjugation? 

In  English  to  have  and  to  be  are  used  as  auxili- 
aries in  the  conjugation  both  of  transitive  and  in- 
transitive verbs ;  ex. :  I  have  come,  I  had  walked, 

I  shall  have  finished  it  then,  I  SHOULD  HAVE 
DONE  it,  I  am  GOING,  I  WAS  WAITING,  I  SHALL 
BE      LOSING      IT,       T      WAS      BEING      QUESTIONED;       in 

French  avoir,  to  have,  is  used  as  the  auxiliary 
of  transitive  verbs ;  ex. :  j'ai  parle,  I  have 
SPOKEN,  and  etre,  to  be,  is  used  as  the  auxiliary 
of  intransitive    and    reflexive    verbs ;    ex. :    je   suis 


84 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


venu,  I  HAVE  COME,  elle  etait  montee,  she  had 
GONE    UPSTAIRS,    HOus   iious   sommes   fdches,    we 

HAVE  GROWN  ANGRY. 

It  is  important,  therefore,  to  give  the  conjugatioti 
of  these  two  verbs  at  once,  pointing  out  their 
irregularities. 


2.  What  are   the   irregularities  in  the  conjugation  of 


avoir? 


Avoir  is  irregular  in  the  pres.  part. : 

past.  part. : 


ayantf 
eu, 
sing,  of  indie,  pres.:  j'ai, 
simple  past:  feus, 

future :  faurai  ( 1 ) , 

conditional :  faurais, 

subjunctive:        que  j'aie, 

All  these  irregularities  can  be  traced  to  the  Latin 
verb  habere  or  to  its  transformations. 


B.   CONJUGATION    OF    AVOIR,    TO  HAVE,    AND    £TRE, 

TO    BE 


3.  Conjugate  the  verb  avoir. 

Infinitive  : 

Present. 
Avoir,  to  have. 

Past. 
Avoir  eu,   to  have  had. 


(1.)  The  irregularity  in  the  future  and  the  conditional  disappears  when  wc 
rrmembei  that  medieval  French  used  indifferently  u  and  v  in  writing,  so  that 
i'aurai  and  j'avrai  were  the   same   word. 


FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


85 


Participle 


Indicative 


Present. 
Ayant,    having. 

Past. 
Eu,   had. 

Compound. 
Ayant  eu,    having  had. 


Present. 
J'aij    I  have 
Tu  as 
II  a 

Nous  avons 
Vous  avez 
lis  out 

Imperfect. 
Pavais,    I  had,    I  was  having 
Tu  avals 
II  avait 
Nous  avions 
Vous  avies 
lis-  avaient 

Simple  Past. 
reus,    I  had 
Tu  eus 
II  eut 

Nous  eumes 
Vous  eutes 
lis  eurent 


86  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

Compound  Past. 

J'ai  eu,   I  have  had 

Tu  as  cu 

II  a  eu 

Nous  avons  eu 

Vous  avez  eu 

Us  ont  eu 

Pluperfect. 

ravais  eu,  I  had  had,  I  had  been  having 

Tu  avals  eu 

II  avait  eu 

Nous  avions  eu 

Vous  aviez  eu 

lis  avaient  eu 

Past  Anterior. 

reus  eu,    I  had  had 
Tu  eus  eu 
II  eut  eu 
Nous  eumes  eu 
Vous  eutes  eu 
lis  eurent  eu 

Future. 

raurai,  I  shall  have 
Tu  auras 
II  aura 
Nous  aurons 
Vous  aurez 
lis  auront 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


S7 


Conditional 


Future  Anterior. 

Paurai  eu,    I  shall  have  had 

Tu  auras  eu 

II  aura  eu 

Nons  aurons  eu 

Vous  aurez  eu 

lis  auront  eu 


Present. 

J'aurais,  I  should  have 

Tu  aura-is 

II  aurait 

Nous  aurions 

Vous  auries 

lis  auraient 

Past. 

Faurais  eu,   I  should  have  had 

Tu  aurais  eu 

II  aurait  eu 

Nous  aurions  eu 

Vous  auries  eu 

lis  auraient  eu 


Imperative  : 


Que  j'aie,  let  me  have 

Ate,    have 

Qu'il  ait,   let  him  have 

Ayons,    let  us  have 

Ayes,    have 

Qu'ils  aient,  let  them  have 


88  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Subjunctive: 


Present. 

Que  faie,    that  I  may  have 

Que  tu  aies 

Qu'il  ait 

Que  nous  ayons 

Que  vous  ayes 

Qu'ils  aient 

Imperfect. 

Que  j'eusse,  that  I  might  have 

Que  tu  eusses 

Qu*il  eut 

Que  nous  eussions 

Que  vous  eussiez 

Qu'ils  eussent 

Past. 

Que  j'aie  eu,    that  I  may  have  had 

Que  tu  aies  eu 

Qu'U  ait  eu 

Que  nous  ayons  eu 

Que  vous  ayes  eu 

Qu'ils  aient  eu 

Pluperfect. 

Que  j'eusse  eu,  that  I  might  have  had 

Que  tu  eusses  eu 

Qu'il  exit  eu 

Que  nous  eussions  eu 

Que  vous  eussiez  eu 

Qu'ils  eussent  eu 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  89 

Note. 

Compounrl  tenses  always  seem  puzzling  at  first,  yet  they 
are  exactly  similar  in  English  and  in  French,  as  ap- 
pears very  clearly  when  one  translates  separately, 
Ex. :  I  should  have  had ;  divide :  i  should  have, 
faurais  -J-  had,  cu  =.  j'aurais  cu. 

4.  Conjugate  the  verb  etre,  to  be. 

Infinitive:  -^. 

Present. 
Etre,  to  be 

Past. 
Avow  ete,  to  have  been 

Pres.   Part. 
£tant,   being 

Past.   Part. 
£te,   been 

Compound   Part. 
Ay  ant  etc,    having  been 

Present. 

Je  suis^   I  am 
Tit  es 
II  est 

Nous  sommes 
Vous  etes 
lis  sont 


Indicative: 


90  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

Imperfect. 

J'  etais^    I  was 
Tu  etais 
II  etait 
Nous  etions 
Vous  eties 
lis  etaient 

Simple  Past. 

Je  fus,   I  was 
Tu  fus 
II  fut 

Nous  fumes 
Vous  futes 
lis  furent 

Compound  Past. 

J'ai  ete^    I  have  been 

Tu  as  ete 

II  a  ete 

Nous  avons  ete 

Vous  avez  ete 

lis  ont  ete 

Pluperfect. 

J'avais  ete,  I  had  been 
Tu  avals  etc 
II  avait  ete 
Nous  aiAons  ete 
Vous  avies  ete 
lis  avaient  ete 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  91 

Past  Anterior. 

Pens  ete,    I  had  been 

7  u    ens  ete 

II  eut  ete 

Nous  Climes  ete 

Vons   elites  ete 

lis  eurent  ete 

Future. 

Je  serai,    I  shall  be 
Til  seras 
II   sera 
Nous  serons 
Vous  serez 
lis  seront 

Future  Anterior. 

Paurai  e^e,    I  shall  have  been 

Tu  auras  et^i 

II  aura  ete 

Nous  aurons  ete 

Vous  aures  He 

lis  auront  ete 


Conditional  : 


Present. 

le  serais,  I  should  be 
Tu  serais 
II  serait 
Nous  serions 
Vous  series 
lis  seraient 


92 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


Imperative 


Past. 

raurais  ete,  I  should  have  been 

Tu  aurais  ete 

II  aurait  ete-. 

Nous  aurions  ete 

Vous  auries  ete 

lis  auraient  ete 


Que  je  sots,  let  me  be 

Sois,    be 

Qu'il  soit,    let  him  be 

Soyons,    let  us  be 

Soyes,    be 

Qu'ils  soient,    let  them  be 


Subjunctive  : 


Present. 

Que  je  sois,    that  I  may  be 

Que  tu  sois 

Qu'il  soit 

Que   nous  soyons 

Que  vous  soyes 

Qu'ils  soient  1 


Imperfect. 

Que  je  fusse,    that 
Que  tu  fusses 
Qu'il  flit 

Que   nous  fussions 
Que  vous  fussies 
Qu'ils  fussent 


1  might  be 


/ 


^ 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  93 

Past. 

Que  j'aie  ete,  that  I  may  have  been 

Que  tu  aies  ete 

Qu'il  ait  ete 

Que  nous  ayons  ete 

Que  vous  ayes  ete 

Qu*ils  aient  ete 

Pluperfect. 

Que  j'eusse  ete,  that  I  might  have  been 

Que  tu  eusses  ete 

Qu'il  exit  ete 

Que  nous  eussions  He 

Que  vous  eussiez  ete* 

Qu'ils  eussent  eie 

C.    THE   FOUR  CONJUGATIONS 


1.  What  are  the  four  French  conjugations? 

French  verbs  are  conjugated  on  iour  models  ac- 
cording to  the  terminations  of  their  infinitives. 

1st  conj. :  verbs  in  er,    ex. :  aim  er 

2nd     "        "  ••  iR,    ex. :  fin  ir 

3rd     "        "  "  oiR.  ex. :  recev  air 

4th     "        "  "  RE,    ex. :  rend  re. 

2.  Are  the  four  conjugations  equally  important? 

Most  grammars  very  unwisely  lead  the  student  to 
imagine  that  it  is  so.  In  reality  there  are  (accord- 
ing to  Hatzfeld  and  Darmesteter's  well-known 
Dictionary)   only  20  verbs  in  re,  some  80  in  oiR. 


94 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


3i00  in  iR,  and  all  the  other  verbs  (about  4,000) 
end  in  er. 

Whenever  the  French  invent  or  adopt  a  new  verb, 
they  conjugate  it  on  aimer  (in  a  few  cases  on  fiu- 
ir),  and  for  this  reason  the  two  conjugations  in 
ER  or  IR  are  called  "living"  while  the  less  important 
conjugations  in  oir  and  re  are  termed  "dead." 
The  conjugation  in  er  is  the  easiest  of  the  four 
and  has  only  two  irregular  verbs  in  daily  use. 


First  Conjugation  (er)  4000  Verbs. 

3.  Conjugate  a  verb  in  er,   (1) 

Infinitive: 

Present. 
Aim  er  (2).  to  love 

Past. 
Avoir  aim  e,  to  have  loved 


Participle  : 


Present. 
Aim  ant,  loving 

Past. 
Aim   e,    loved 

'     Compound  Past. 
Ayant  aime,  having  loved 


(1)  Tlie  moment  the  student  knows  aimer  he  will  do  well  always  to  practise 
other  verbs  in   er,   constantly  varying  the  order  of  the   tenses. 

(2)  The  termination  kr  corresponds  to  latin  verbs  in  are,    ex.:    aimer. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  95 


Indicative: 


Present. 

J'aim  e,     I  love 
Tu  aim   es 
II  aim  e 
Nous  aim  ons 
Vous  aim  es 
lis  aim   ent 

Imperfect. 

J'aim  ais,   I  loved,    I  was  loving 

Tu  aim  ais 

II  aim  ait 

Nous  aim  ions 

Vous  aim  iez 

lis  aim  event 

Simple  Past. 

J'aim  ai,     I  loved 
Tu  aim  as 
II  aim  a 

Nous  aim  dmes 
Vous   aim   cites 
lis  aim  erent^ 

Compound  Past. 

Fai  aim   e,    I   have  loved 

Tu  as  aim  e 

II  a  aim  e 

Nous   avons  aim   e 

Vous  avez  aim   e 

lis  ont  aim  e 


96  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

Pluperfect. 

J' avals  aim  e,    I  had  loved,    1  had  been 
Tu  avais  aim  e  [loving 

//  avail  aim  e 
Nous  avians  aim  e 
Vous  aviez  aim  e 
lis  avaient  aim  e 

I^ast  Anterior. 

reus  aim  e,     I  had  loved 

Tu  eus  aim  e 

II  eut  aim  e 

Nous  eumes  aim  e 

Vous  elites  aim  e 

lis  eurent  aim  e 

Future. 

Maimer  ai,     I  shall  love 

Tu  aimer  as 

1 1  aimer  a 

Nous  aimer  ons 

Vous  aimer  ez 

lis  aimer  out 

Future  Anterior. 

J'aurai  aim  e,  I  shall  have  loved 

Tu  auras  aim  e 

II  aura  aim  e 

Nous  aurons  aim  e 

Vous  aures  aim  e 

lis  auront  aim  e 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


97 


Conditional  : 


Present. 
J'aimer  ais,     I 


should  love 


Tu  aimer  ais 
II  aimer  aUt 
Nous  aimer  ions 
Vons  aimer  iez 
lis  aimer  aient 

Past. 

J'aurais  aim  e,     T  sliould  have  loved 

Tu  aurais  aim  e 

II  aitrait  aim  e 

Nous  aurions  aim  e 

Vous  auriez  aim  e 

lis  auraient  aim  e 


Imperative 


Subjunctive  : 


Que  faime,  let  me  love 

Aim  e,  love 

Qu'il  aim  e,    let  him  love 

Aim  ons,    let  us  love 

Aim   ez,    love 

Qu'ils  aim  ent,    let  them  love. 


Present. 

Que  faim  e,     that  I  may  love 

Que  tu  aim  es 

Qu'il  aim  e 

Que  nous  aim  ions 

Que  vous  aim  iez 

Qu'ils  aim  ent 


98  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

Imperfect. 

Que  faim  as^e,    that  I  might  love 

Que  tu   aim   asses 

Qu'il  aim  at 

Que  nous  aim   assions 

Que  vous  aim  assies 

Qu'ils  aim  assent 

Past. 

Que  faie  aim  e,    that  I  may  have  loved 

Que  tu  aies  aim  e 

Qu'il  ait  aim   e 

Que  nous  ayons  aim  e 

Que  vous  ayes  aim  e 

Qu'ils   aienf   aim    e 

Pluperfect. 

Que  j'eusse  aim  e,     that  I  mii^ht  have 

Que  tu  eusses  aim  e  [loved 

Qu'il  eut  aim   e 

Que  nous  eussions  aim  e 

Que  vous  eussiez  aim  e 

Qu'ils   eussent  aim.   e 

4.  What  is  to  be  noticed  in  this  conjugation? 

a)  That  the  radical  aim  does  not  change. 

b)  That  the  simple  past  is  in  ai,  second  person  as, 
and  the  past  part    is  in  e. 

5.  Are  there  any  irregularities  in  the  first  conjugation? 

a)  Verbs  in  cer  (ex. :  percer,  to  pierce)  take  a  cedil- 
la before  a  and  o,  as  otherwise  the  c  would  sound 
like  K,  ex.:  it  perga,  he  pierced; 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  99 

b)  verbs  in  ger  (ex.:  manger*  to  eat)  taV.c  an  e  be- 
fore A  and  o,  as  otherwise  the  G  would  sound 
like  GH,    ex. :  il  mangea,  he  ate  ; 

c)  verbs  the  last  syllable  but  one  of  which  has  a 
mute  E  (ex. :  se  promener,  to  walk)  or  an  e  (ex. : 
repeter,  to  repeat)  change  e  or  e  into  e  before 
terminations  in  e,  es,  ent,  ex. :  Je  me  promene,  Us 
repetent; 

however  the  verbs : 

appeler,  to  call 

chanceler,  to  reel 

epeler,  to  spell 

etinceler,  to  sparkle 

renoiiveler,  to  renew 

cachcter,  to  seal 

epousseter,  to  dust 

feuilleter,  to  thread 

jetcr,  to  throw 

souffleter*  to  cuff 

all  ending  in  ler  or  ter_,  instead  of  changing  e 
or  e  into  e,  double  the  l  or  t  of  their  termination : 
ex. :  tu  appelles,  you  call;  Us  jettent,  they  throw  : 

d)  verbs  in  ayer,  oyer,  uyer,  change  y  into  i  before 
a  mute  e_,  ex. :  je  paie,  I  pay  ;  U  gmploie,  HE  ejm- 
PLOYs ;  Us  m'ennuient,  they  bore  me. 

6.  What  are  the  irregular  verbs  in  er? 

\.  AUer,   to  go,   which . borrows   in  its   tenses    three 
radicals : 


100  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

a)  Inf.  Aller,  allant,  alle 

ind  pres. :  nous  allons,   voiis  allez 
imp. :  j'allais  , 

simple  past. :  j'allai 
subj.  pres. :  que  j'aille 
subj.  imp. :  que  j'allasse 

b)  Va, 

indie,  pres. :  je  vais,   tu  vas,  il  va,  Us  vont 
imperat. :  va  (vas-y) 

C)       IR, 

f  ut. :  firai 
cond. :  firais 

2.    Envoyer,  to  send. 

The  future  j'enverrai  is  the  only  irrcg.  tense. 


Second  Conjugation  (ir)  300  V^erhs. 

7.  Conjugate  a  verb  in  ir,  (1) 

Infinitive  : 

Present. 

Fin  ir^    to  finish 

Past. 
Avoir  fin  i,  to  have  finished 


(1)  These  verbs  correspond  (a)  to  the  Latin  verbs  in  ire  and  (b)  to  many 
other  verbs  which  gradually  changed  their  infinitiveg  to  a  form  in  isco  or  esco 
(Ex.:  FLORESCO)  indicating  a  beginning  and  consequemtly  called  inchoative. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


101 


Participle 


Indicative 


Present. 
Fin  issant,   finishing     '.'^^ ;     \'y 

Past. 
Fin  it    finished 

Compound  Past. 
Ayant  Un  i,    having  finished 

Present. 

Je  fin  is,    I  finish 

Tu  Un  is 

IlHnU 

Nous  Un  issons 

Vous  fin  issez 

lis  fin  issent 

Imperfect. 

Je  fin  issais,   I  finished,    I  was  finishing 

Tu  fin  issais 

II  Un  is  sail 

Nous  fin  issions 

Vous  fin  issies 

lis  fin  issaient 

Simple  Past. 

Je  fin  is,     I  finished 
7m  fin  is 
II  fin  it 
Nous  fin  hnes 
Vous  fin  ties 
lis  fin  irent 


102  FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

:    'Compound  Past. 

;  ,  V  ...         . ,         }'ai  fin  u    I  have  finished 
'  «'".'.^'''.      .  .  .n\  .'fM^us  fin  i 
II  a  iin  i 
Nous  avons  fin  i 
Vous  avez  Hn  i 
lis  ont  fin  i 

Pluperfect. 

J'avais  Hn  i,     I  had  finished 

Tu  avais  fin  i 

II  avait  fin  i 

Nous  avions  fin  i 

Vous  aviez  fin  i 

lis  avaient  fin  i 

Past  Anterior. 

J'eus  fin  i,     I  had  finished 

Tu  eus  fin  % 

II  eut  fin  i 

Nous  eumes  fin  i 

Vous  eutes  fin  i 

lis  eurent  fin  i 

Future. 

le  fin  irai     I  shall  finish 

Tu  fin  iras 

II  fin  ira 

Nous  fin  irons 

Vous  fin  ires 

lis  fin  iront 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


103 


Conditional  : 


Future  Anterior. 

J'aurai  fin  i,     I  shall  have  finished 

Tu  auras  Hn  i 

II  aura  iin  i 

Nous  aurons  fin  i 

Vous  aurez  fin  i 

lis  auront  fin  i 


Present. 

Je  fin  irais,     I  should  finish 

Tu  fin  irais 

II  fin  irait 

Nous  fin  irions 

Vous  fin  tries 

lis  fin  iraient 

Past. 

Paurais  fin  i, .  I  should  have  finished 

Tu  aurais  fin  i 

II  aurait  fin  i 

Nous  aurions  fin  i 

Vous  aurie:^  fin  i 

lis  auraient  fin  i 


Imperative: 


Que  je  finisse,    let  me  finish 

Fin  is,     finish 

Qu'il  fin  isse,    let  him  finish 

Fin  issons,     let  us  finish 

Fin  issc:,     finish 

Qu'ils  fin  isscnt.     let  them  finish 


104  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Subjunctive  : 


Present. 

Que  je  Hn  isse,    that  I  may  finish 

Que  tu  Hn  isses 

Qu^il  iin  isse 

Que  nous  fin  issions 

Que  vous  fin  issiez 

Qu'ils  fin  is  sent 

Imperfect. 

Que  je  fin  isse,  that  I  might  finish 

Que  tu  fin  isses 

Qu'il  fin  it 

Que  nous  fin  issions 

Que  vous  fin  issies 

Quails  fin  issent 

Past. 

Que  j'aie  fin  i,    that  I  may  have  finished 

Que  tu  aies  fin  i 

Qu'il  ait  fin  i 

Que  nous  ayons  fin  i 

Que  vous  ayez  fin  i 

Quails  aient  fin  i 

Pluperfect. 

Que  feusse  fin  i,  that  I  might  have  fin- 

Que  tu  eusses  fin  i  [ished 

Qu'il  eut  fin  i 

Que  nous  eussions  fin  i 

Que  vous  eussies  fin  i 

Qu'ils  eussent  fin  i 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  105 

8.  What  is  to  be  noticed  in  this  conjugation? 

o)     The  radical  (fin)  does  not  change; 

b)  the  simple  past  ends  in  is  (je  iinis,  I  finished) 
and  tlie  past  part,  ends  in  i   {Uni,  finished)  ; 

c)  the  syllable  iss,  borrowed  from  the  Latin  verbs 
in  isco,  is  inserted  betwen  the  radical  and 
the  termination  in  1.  the  indie,  present  {nous  iin- 
iss-ons,  \VF.  finish),  2.  the  imperfect  (je  fin-iss- 
ais,  I  finished),  3.  the  imperative  (Hn-iss-ons, 
LET  us  finish),  4.  the  subj.  present  (que  je  Hn-isse, 
THAT  I  MAY  FINISH),  and  5.  the  present  participle 
( Hn-iss-an t,  finishing). 

Grammarians  used  to  distinguish  between  the 
verbs  in  ir  adding  the  syllable  iss  in  this  way, 
(about  300),  and  the  verbs  in  ir  not  doing  so, 
(about  20),  ex.:  dorm-ir,  dormant,  to  sleep, 
sleeping,  but  it  is  more  rational  to  treat  the  latter 
as  irregular  verbs. 

9.  What  are  the  irregular  verbs  in  ir? 

Infinitive.  Indie,  pres. 

Assaillir,     to  assault  j'assaille 
Tressaillir,  to  give  a  start   je  tressaille 

Couvrir,    to  cover  je  couvre 

Ciieillir,    to  gather  je  cueille 

Offrir,     to  offer  j' off  re 

Ouvrir,  to  open  j'ouvre 

Souffrir,    to  suffer  je  souffre 


lOf) 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Simp.  past. 

j'assaillis 
je  tressaillis 
je  couvris 
je  cueiltis 
foffris 
j'ouvris 
je  souffris 


Compound  past. 

j^ai  assaiUi 
j'ai  tressailli 
j'ai  convert 
j'ai  cueilli 
j'ai  offcrt 
j'ai  ouvert 
j'ai  sonffcrt 


(The  above  verbs  conjugate  their  indie,  pres.  on 
aimer).  Moreover  cucillir  has  je  cueillerai  (not 
cueillirai)   in  the  future. 


Infinit. 
Bouillir,    to  boil 

Courir,     to  run 
Dormir,    to  sleep 
Fuir,  to  flee 

Mentir,     to  lie 
Partir,     to  go 
Se  repentir,     to  repent 
Sentir,    to  feel 
Servir,     to  serve 
Sortir,    to  go  out 
Ve1;ir,    to  clothe 


Indie,  pres. 

je  bo  us 

nous  houillofis 

je  cours 

je  dors 

je  fuis 

nous  fuyons 

je  mens 

je  pars 

je  me  repens 

je  sens 

je  sers 

je  sors 

je  vets 


Simple  Past. 

je  bouilHs 

je  conrus 

je  dormis 

je  fuis 


Past  Participle. 

j'ai  houilli 
j'ai  couru 
j'ai  dor  mi 
j'ai  fui 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


107 


je  mentis 
je  partis 
je  me  repentis 
je  sentis 
je  serms 
je  sortis 
je  vetis 


j^ai  m^nti 

je  suis  parti 

je  me  suis  repenti 

j'ai  senti 

j'ai  servi 

je  suis  sorti 

j'ai  vctu 


(The  future  of  courir  is  je  courrai;  the  future  of 
the  others  is  regular). 


Infinitive. 

Indie.  Pres. 

Acquerir,  to  acquire 

j'acquiers 

nous  acquerons 

Mourir,   to  die 

je  meurs 

nous  mourons 

Tenir,  to  hold 

je  tiens 

nous  tenons 

Venir,  to  come 

je  viens 

nous  venons 

Simple  Past.             Future. 

Past  Participle 

j'acquis                      j^acquerrai 

j'ai  acquis 

je  m  our  us                 je  mourrai 

je  suis  mort 

je  tins                       je  tiendrai 

j'ai  tenu 

je  vins                      je  viendrai 

je  suis  venu 

Note. 


Hair,  to  hate,  in  the  present  indicative  is  conjugated: 

je  hais,  tu  hods,  il  hait.    The  imperat.  sing,  is  also 

hais.     Only  these  four  forms  lose  the  dieresis   (") 
over  i. 

Benir,  to    bless,    is    regular    except    in  ecclesiastical 

phrases    like    eau    benite,    holy    water,  buis    bcnit, 
blessed  box. 


108 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Third  Conjugation  (oir).  25  Verbs. 

10.  Conjugate  a  verb  in  oir,  (1) 

Infinitive: 

Present. 
Recev  oir,   to  receive 

Past. 

Avoir  reg  u,   to  have  received 


Participle 


Indicative  : 


Present. 
Recev  ant,    receiving 

Past. 
Reg  u,    received 

Compound. 
Ayant  reg  u,   having  received 

Present. 

Je  reg  ois,    I  receive 

Tu  reg  ois 

II  reg  oit 

Nous  recev  ons        ♦ 

Voiis  recev  ez 

Us  reg  oivent 


(1)  These   verbs   are   derived    from    Latin    verbs   in    ere    or   ere. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  109 

Imperfect. 

Je  recev  ais,    I  received 
Tu  recev  ais 
II  recev  ait 
Nous  recev  ions 
Vous  recev  ies 
lis  recev  aient 

Simple  Past. 

Je  reg  us,   I  received 
Tu  reg  us 
II  reg  ut 
Nous  reg  umes 
Vous  reg  utes 
lis  reg  urent 

Compound  Past. 

J'ai  reg  u,    I  have  received 

Tu  as  reg  u 

II  a  reg  u 

Nous  avons  reg   u 

Vous  avez  reg  u 

lis  ont  reg  u 

Pluperfect. 

Favais  reg  u,    I  had  received 

Tu  avais  reg  u 

II  avail  reg  u 

Nous  avions  reg  u 

Vous  aviez  reg  u 

lis  avaient  reg  u 


110  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

Past  Anterior. 

J'eus  reg  u,    I  had  received 

Tu  ens  reg  u 

II  eut  reg  u 

Nous  eumes  reg  u 

Vous  elites  reg  u 

lis  eurent  reg  u 

Future. 

Je  recev  rax,     I    shall   receive 

Tu  recev  ras 

II  recev  ra 

Nous  recev  rons 

Vous  recev  res 

lis  recev  ront 

Future  Anterior. 

Paurai  reg  u,    I  shall  have  received 

Tu  auras  reg  u 

II  aura  reg  u 

Nous   aurons  reg   u 

Vous  aurez  reg  u 

lis  auront  reg  u 


Conditional 


Present. 

Je  recev  rais,    I  should  receive 

Tu  recev  rais 

II  recev  rait 

Nous   recev  rions 

Vous  recev  ries 

lis  recev  raient 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


111 


Imperative: 


Subjunctive 


Past. 

Faiirais  reg  u,  I  should  have  received 

Tu  aurais  reg  u 

II  aurait  reg  u 

Nous  aurions  reg  u 

Vous  auriez  reg  u 

lis  auraient  reg  u 


Que  je  regoive,  let  me  receive 

Reg  ois,    receive 

Qu'il  reg  oive,  let  him  receive 

Recev  ons,    let  us  receive 

Recev  ez,    receive 

QWils  reg  oivent,  let  them  receive 


Present. 

Que  je  regoiv  e,    that  I  may  receive 

Que  tu  regoiv  es 

Qu'il  regoiv  e 

Que  nous  recev  ions 

Que  vous  recev  iez 

Qu'ils  regoiv  ent 


Imperfect. 

Que  je  reg  usse,    that  I  might   receive 

Que  tu  reg  usses 

Qu'il  reg  ut 

Que  nous   reg   ussions 

Que  vous  reg  us  si  e  2 

Qu'ils  reg  ussent 


112  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

Past. 

Que  j'aie  reg  u,    That  I  may  have  re- 

Que  tu  aies  reg  u  [ceived 

Qu'il  ait  reg  u 

Que  nous  ay  oris  reg  u 

Que  vous  ayes  reg  u 

Qu'ils  aient  reg  u 

Pluperfect. 

Que  j'eusse  reg  u,    that  I  might  have 

Que  tu  eusses  reg  u  [received 

Qu'il  eut  reg  u 

Que  nous  eussions  reg  u 

Que  vous  eussiez  reg  u 

Qu'ils  eussent  reg  u 


11.  What  is  to  be  noticed  in  this  conjugation? 

a)  There  are  not  more  than  twenty  to  twenty-five 
verbs  in  oir  in  frequent  use; 

b)  most  of  them  are  irregular.  Only  percevoir,  to 
PERCEIVE,  apercevoir,  to  catch  a  glimpse  of, 
decevoir,  to  deceive_,  concevoir,  to  conceive,  are 
conjugated  like  recevoir,  and  as  their  radical  is  va- 
riable (recev  in  recev  oir  becoming  reg' in  je  regois) 
even  these  can  hardly  be  called  regular; 

c)  the  simple  past  is  in  us,  ex. :  je  reg  us,  and  the 
past  part,  in  u,  ex. :  reg  u;  however  voir,  to  see, 
and  prevoir,  to  foresee  (but  not  pourvoir,  to  pro- 
vide)  have  their  simple  past  in  is,  ex.:  je  iMs,  I 

SAW. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


113 


12.  What  are  the  irregular  verbs  in  oir? 

The  following  hardly  change  their  radical 

Infinitive. 
De choir,   to  fall  off 


Echoir,    to  fall  due 
Falloir,   to  be  necessary 
Pleuvoir,    to  rain 
Prevoir,  to  foresee 
Sursoir,    to  put  off 
Valoir,    to  be  worth 


Indie.  Pres. 
je    dechois 
nous  dechoyons 
il   echoit 
il  faut 
il  pleut 
je  prevois 
je  sursois 
je  vaux 
nous  valons 


Simple  Past. 
je  dechus 
il  echut 
il  fallut 
il  plut 
je  previs 
je  sursis 
je  valus 


Ftiture. 
je  decherrai 
il  echerra 
il  faudra 
il  pleuvra 
je  prevoirai 
je  sursoirai 
je  vaudrai 


Past  Part. 
j'ai  dechu 
il  est  echu 
il  a  fallu 
il  a  plu 
j*ai  prevu 
j'ai  sursis 
j'ai  valu 


The   following  change  their  radical   in  a  marked 
manner : 


Infinitive. 
Asseoir,    to  seat 


Devoir,   to  owe,  must 
Mouvoir,  to  move 


Indie.  Pres. 
j'assieds 
nous   asseyons 
or  j'assois 
nous  assoyons 
je  dots 
nous  devons 
je  meus 
nous  mouvons 


114 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Simple  Past. 

Future. 

Past  Part. 

j'assis 

j'assierqi 
or  j'asseoirai 
or  j'asseyerai 

j'ai  assis 

je  dus 

je  devrai 

j'ai  du 

je  mus 

je  mouvrai 

j'ai  mu 

Infinitive. 

Indie.  Pres. 

Potivoir,   can,  may 

je  peux  or  je  puis 

nous  pouvons 

Savoir,    to  know 

je  sais 

nous  Savons 

(Imperative:   Sache 

Subj.  Pres.  Que  jq  sache 

Participle  Pres.  Sachant} 

Seoir,   to  be 

becoming 

il  sicd 

Participle  Pres.:  Seyant 

Voir,    to  see 

je  vois 

nous  voyons 

Vouloir,    to 

want 

je  veux 
nous  voulons 

Simple  Past. 

Future. 

Past  Part. 

je  pus 

je  poiirrai 

j'ai  pu 

je  sus 

je  saurai 
il  siera 

j'ai  su 

je  vis 

je  verrai 

j'ai  vu 

je  voulus 

je  voudrai 

j'ai  voulu 

FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


115 


Fourth  Conjugation  (re),  80  Verbs. 


13.  Conjugate  a  verb  in  re.   (1) 

Infinitive  : 

Prese  ut. 
Rend  re,  to  render 


Participle  : 


Indicative: 


Past. 
Avoir  rend  u,    to  have  rendered 

Present. 
Rend  ant,    rendering 

Past. 
Rend  u,    rendered 

Compound. 
Ayant  rend  u,    having  rendered 

Present. 

Je  rend  s,  I  render 

Tu  rend  s 

II  .rend 

Nous  rend  ons 

Vous  rend  ez 

lis  rend  ent 


(1)  These   verbs   are   derived   mostly    from   Latin   verbs   in   ere. 


116  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

Imperfect. 

Je  rend  ais,    I  rendered 
Tu  rend  ais 
II  rend  ait 
Nous  rend  ions 
Vous  rend  iez 
lis  rend  aient 

Simple  Past. 

Je  rend  is,    I  rendered 
Tu  rend  is 
II  rend  it 
Nous  rend  imes 
Vous  rend  ites 
lis  rend  irent- 

Compound  Past. 

rai  rend  u,    I  have   rendered 

Tu  as  rend  u 

II  a  rend  u 

Nous  avons  rend  u 

Vous  avez  rend  u 

lis  ont  rend  u 

Pluperfect. 

ravais  rend  u,    I  had  rendered 

Tu  avais  rend  u 

II  avait  rend  u 

Nous  avians  rend  u 

Vous  aviez  rend  u 

lis  avaient  rend  u 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  117 

Past  Anterior. 

J'eiis  rend  u,    I  had  rendered 

Tu  ens  rend  u 

II  eut  rend  u 

Nous  e limes  rend  u 

Vous  elites  rend  u 

lis  eurent  rend  u 

Future. 

Je  rend  rai,    I  shall  render 

Tu  rend  ras 

II  rend  ra 

Nous  rend  rons 

Vous  rend  res 

lis  rend  ront 

Future  Anterior. 

J'aurai  rend  u,   I  shall  have  rendered 

Tu  auras  rend  u 

II  aura  rend  u 

Nous  aurons  rend  u 

Vousaurez  rend  u 

lis  auront  rend  u 


Conditional 


Present. 

Je  rend  rais,    I  should  render 

Tu  rend  rais 

II  rend  rait 

Nous  rend  rions 

Vous  rend  riez 

lis  rend  raient 


118 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Imperative 


Subjunctive  : 


Past. 

Paurais  rend  u,    I  should  have  rendered 

7\  aurais  rend  u 

II  aurait  rend  u 

Nous  aurions  rend  u 

Vous  auries  rend  u 

lis  auraient  rend  u 


Que  je  rende,  let  me  render 

Rend  s,     render 

Qu'il  rend  e,    let  him   render 

Rend  ons,    let  us  render 

Rend  es,   render 

Quails  rend  ent,  let  them  render 


Present. 

Que  je  rend  e,    that  I  may  render 

Que  tu  rend   es 

Qu'il  rend  e 

Que  nous  rend  ions 

Que  vous  rend  ies 

Quails  rend  ent 


Imperfect. 

Que  je  rend  isse,    that  I  might  render 

Que  tu  rend  isses 

Qu'il  rend  it 

Que  nous  rend  issions 

Que  vous  rend  issiez 

Qu'ils  rend  is  sent 


FRENCH    GRAMMAR   MADE   CLEAR  119 

Past. 

Que  fate  rend  u,    that  I  may  have  ren- 

Que  tu  aies  rend  u  [dered 

Qu'il  ait  rend  u 

Que  nous  ayons  rend  u 

Que  vous  aye 2  rend  u 

Qu'ils  aient  rend  u 

Pluperfect. 

Que  feusse  rend  u,    that  I  might  have 

Que  tu  ettsses  rend  u  [rendered 

Qu'il  eut  rend  u 

Que  nous  eussions  rend  u 

Que  vous  eussiez  rend  u 

Qu'ils  eussent  rend  u 

14.  What  is  to  be  noticed  in  this  conjugation? 

a)  It  numbers  about  80  verbs; 

b)  these  80  verbs   can  be  classified  as    follows: 

1.  Verbs  in  endre,  (descendre,  to  go  down,  fendre, 
TO  SPLIT,  defendre,  to  forbid,  pendre,  to  hang, 
tendre,  to  stretch^  vendre,  to  sell). 

Verbs  in  ondre    (fondre,  to  melt,  pondre,  to 

LAY    EGGS,     repondre,    to    answer,     tondre,    to 

shear)  ;  also  rompre,  to  break. 

Verbs  in  rdre  (perdre,  to  lose,  mordre,  to  bite, 

tordre,  to  wring) 

are  conjugated  like  rendre. 

2.  Verbs  in  aindre  {craindre,  to  fear,  plaindre, 
TO  PITY,    contraindre,  to  force). 

Verbs  in  eindre   {ceindre,  to  gird,  feindre,  to 
FEIGN,    enfreindre,  to  break  a  rule,    geindre. 


120  FRENCH    GRAMMAR   MADE   CLEAR 

TO  GROAN,  peindre,  to  paint,  empreindre,  to 
IMPRINT,  teindre,  to  dye,  atteindre,  to  reach, 
eteindre,  to  extinguish,  astreindre,  to  compel, 
etreindre,  to  hug,  restreindre,  to  restrict),  and 
verbs  in  oindre  (oindre,  to  anoint,  join- 
dre,  TO  join,  poindre,  to  break  out  (sun), 
have  all  added  the  d  for  euphony  (crainre  in- 
stead of  craindre  is  harsh)  and  their  real  radical 
is  AiN,  EiN,  01 N ;  hence  their  present  indie,  je 
cradns,  je  peins,  j'oins.  and  their  imperat.  are 
without  a  d; 

in  all  the  other  tenses,  except  the  future  (crain- 
drai)  and  conditional  (craindrais)  they  change 
AIN,  EIN,  oiN,  into  AiGN,  EiGN,  oiGN  (je  craignis, 
je  peignis,  j'oignis)  ; 

3.  Vei'bs  in  aitre  (connaitre,  to  know,  paitre, 
TO  BROWSE,  paraitre,  to  appear,)  or  in  oitre 
croitre,  to  increase,  decroitre,  to  decrease) 
have  added  the  t  for  euphony  and  this  T  dis- 
appears in  the  pres.  indie,  {je  connais) ,  the. 
imperfect  {je  connaissais)  and  the  tenses  de- 
rived from  them; 

the  simple  past,  is  in  us,  {je  connus)  and  the 
past  part,  in  u,  (connu). 

4.  Verbs  in  uire  {nuire,  to  hurt,  luire,  to 
shine,  construire,  to  build,  detruire,  to  destroy, 
instruire,  to  instruct,  conduire,  to  lead, 
enduire,  to  coat,  induire,  to  induce,  infroduire, 
to  introduce,  reduire,  to  reduce)  have  their 
radical  in  uis,  (je  nuis,  je  nuisais,  je  nuisis), 
but  their  future  is  in  uirai  (je  nuirai),  and  their 
conditional  in  uirais  (je  miirais),  the  past  part, 
is  in  ui,  (j'ai  mti). 


FRENCH    GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


121 


5.  Irregular  verbs  as  below : 


15.  What  are  the  irregular  verbs  in 

Infinitive.  Indie.  Pres. 

Absoudrc,  to  absolve     f  ah  sous 

nous  ahsolvons 

Dissoudre,  to  dissolve    je  dissous 

nous  diss  oho  ns 

Resoudrc,  to  resolve      je  resouds 

nous  resolvons 


Coudre,  to  sew 
Moudre,  to  grind 
Battre,  to  beat 
/  Mettre,  to  put 
1/  Boire,  to  drink 


je  couds 
nous  cousons 
je  mouds 
nous  moulons 
je  bats 
nous  battons 
je  mets 
nous  mettons 
je  hois 
nous  huvons 
lis  boivent 
Conclure,  to  conclude    y^  conclus 
Exclure,  to  exclude       j'exclus 
Confire,  to  preserve      y^  conHs 

(Participle  Pres. : 

coniisant) 
je  nrnudis 
nous  maudissons 


Maudire,  to  curse 
Croire,  to  believe 
Dire,  to  say 


je  crois 
nous  croyons 
je  dis 
nous  disons 


re: 

Simple   Past, 
none 

none 

je  resolus 

je  cousis 

je  moulus 

je  boit^tis 

je  mis 

je  bus 
(Part.  Present 

huvant) 
je  conclus 

je  coniis 

je  maudis 
je  crus 
je  dis 


122 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


<*    Ecrire,   to  write 

j'ecris 

nous  ecrivons 

j'ecrivis 

(^  Faire,  to  do 

je  fais 
nous  faisons 
vous  faites 
Us  font 
(Subj.  Pres.: 
que  je  fasse) 

je  Us 

Infinitive. 

Future. 

Past.  Part. 

Ahsoudre,  to  absolve 

j'ahsoudrai 

j'ai 

absous 

Dissoudre,  to  dissolve 

je  dissoudrai 

j'ai 

dissous 

Resoudre,  to  resolve 

je  resoudrai 

j'ai 

resolu 

Coudre,  to  sew 

je  coudrai 

j'ai 

cousu 

Moudre,  to  grind 

je  moudrai 

j'ai 

moulu 

Battre,  to  beat 

je  battrai 

j'a% 

batlu 

Mettre,  to  put 

je  mettrai 

j-m 

/mis 

5ofr^,    to  drink 

je  boirai 

fax 

bu 

Coiiclure,  to  conclude 

je  conclurai 

/j'a 

i  conclu 

Coniire,  to  preserve 

je  coniirai 

fai 

confit 

Exclure,  to  exclude 

j'exclurai 

j'm 

cxclu 

Maudire,   to  curse 

je  maudirai 

j'a 

I  maudit 

Croire,  to  believe 

je  croirai 

j'a 

i  cru 

Z^ir^,   to  say 

je  dirai 

j'a 

i  dit 

Ecrire,   to  write 

j'ecrirai 

j'a 

i  ecrit 

Fa/r^,  to  do 

je  ferai 

j'ai  fait 

Infinitive. 

Indie.  Pres. 

Simple   Past. 

:    Lfr^,  to  read 

je  lis 
nous  lisons 

je  lus 

C   Plaire,  to  please 

je  plais 
nous  plaisons 

je  plus 

Prendre,  to  take 

je  prends 

je  pris 

nous  prenons 

FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


123 


% 


Rire,  to  laugh 

je  ris 

je  ris 

Stiff  ire,  to  suffice 

je  suffis 
nous  suffisons 

je  suffis 

Suivre,    to   follow 

je  suis 
nous  suivons 

je  suivis 

Se  taire,  to  be  silent 

je  me  tais 

je  me  tus 

Vainer e,    to  conquer 

je  vaincs 

je  vainquis 

il  vninc 

nous  vainquons 

^Vivre,   to  live 

je  vis 

je  vecus 

Braire,  to  bray 

il  brait 
ils  braient 

Clore,  to  close 

je  clos 
tu  clos 
il  clot 

£clore,    to  hatch 

j'eclos 
tu  eclos 
il  eclot 
ils  eclosent 

Frire,  to  fry                i 

'  je  fris 
tu  fris 
il  frit. 

Traire,  to  milk 

je  trais 
nous  trayons 

Infinitive. 

Future. 

Past  Part 

LiV^,  to  read 

je  lirai 

j'ai  lu 

Plaire,  to  please 

je  plairai 

fai  plu 

Prendre,  to  take 

je  prendrai 

j'ai  pris 

T^ir^,  to  laugh 

je  rirai 

j'ai  ri 

Stiffire,  to  suffice 

je  suffirni 

j'ai  suffi 

Suivre,    to  follow 

je  suivrai 

j'ai  suivi 

5"^  faiV^,  to  be  silent 

je  me  t  air  at 

je  me  suis  tu 

124  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


Vaincre,    to  conquer  jc  vainer ai  j'ai  vaincu 

Vivre,  to  live  je  vivrai  j'ai  vecu 

Braire,  to  bray  il  braira 

Us  braironi 

Clore,  to  close  je  clorai  j'ai  clos 

Rclore,    to  hatch  j'eclorai  j'ai  eclos 

Frire,  to  fry  je  frirai  j'ai  frit 

Traire,  to  milk  je  trairai  j'ai  trait 


C.     THE  USE  OF  TENSES 
INFINITIVE 

1.  Is   not   the  infinitive    frequently    used    in    French 
instead  of  the  present  participle  in  English? 

a)  The  infinitive  is  constantly  used  in  French,  as  the 
present  participle  is  constantly  used  in  English,  as 
a  subject  or  an  object,  ex. :  dying  for  oner's  coun- 
try IS  THE  NOBLEST  LOT^  mouriv  pour  sa  patrie 
(fest  le  sort  le  plus  beau;  I  dislike  punishing  a 
LITTLE  BOY,    je  deteste  punir  un  petit  gargon; 

h)  the  infinitive  is  used  instead  of  the  present  parti- 
ciple (1)  after  prepositions  (avant  de,  apres,  au 
lieu  de,  de,  sans),  ex.:  think  before  speaking, 
reflechissez  avant  de  parler : 

how^ever,   the  present  participle  is   used   after   en 
(meaning  in,  w^hile,  by,  or  on),   ex.:  ne  Uses  pas 
-     en   mangeant,   do    not   read   while   eating;     cu 
arrivant,  on  arriving. 


(1)   In  this  connection  called  gerund  by  grammarians. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  125 


Note. 


The  French  language  is  often  compelled  to  use  cir- 
cumlocutions to  translate  English  participles  like 
those  in  the  following  sentences:  he  came  without 
ANYBODY  ASKING  HIM,  il  vifit  sGHS  que  personm 
I'invitdt;  your  forgetting  my  recommendation 
CAUSED  ALL  THE  MISCHIEF,  ett  oubUafit  ma  recom- 
mandation  vous  aves  cause  tout  le  mat. 

Are  there  any  other  cases  in  which  the  French 
language  substitutes  the  infinitive  for  different 
tenses  in  English? 

Yes: 

a)  in    very   brief    interrogative   sentences,     ex.:    que 
fairef  qui  appelerf  ou  courirf  what  shall  i  do? 

WHOM    CAN    I    CALL?     WHERE   CAN    I    RUN? 

b)  in   sentences    imitating  the   historical   infinitive   in 
Latin,  ex.:  Et    lui    de    rire!    {tunc    eum    rider e) 

WHEREUPON    HE    LAUGHED; 

c)  as  an  imperative,  ex. :  Agiter  avant  de  s'en  servir : 
SHAKE    BEFORE    USING;    vefiir    de    bonne    heure, 

PLEASE  COME  EARLY. 


Note. 


The  exclamative  infinitive    (ex..:  go  there!  never!)  is 
frequent  in  French,   ex.:    Allcr  la!     jamais! 


PARTICIPLE 

1.  What  is  the  concord  of  the  present  participle? 

A  word  ending  in  ant  may  be  either  a  real  present 
participle  or  a  verbal  adjective,  i.e.  an  adjective 
derived  from  a  verb,  as  an  English  word  ending 
in  iNG  may  be  either  a  present  participle  (ex.:  my 
SPEECH  VISIBLY  CONVINCING  HIM )  or  an  ad- 


126  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

jective    (ex.:   my  convincing  speech   persuaded 

him). 

In  the  first  case  (participle)  there  is  no  agreement, 

ex. :  on  voit  ccs  montagnes  dominant  tout  VHudson, 

YOU     see    those     mountains    dominating    the 

whole  Hudson  ; 

in  the  second  case   {verbal  adjective)   the  word  is 

regarded  as  an  adjective  and  agrees  with  the  noun, 

ex. :  montrez-moi  les  points  dominants,  show    me 

THE   highest   points. 

2.  What  is  the  agreement  of  the  past  participle? 

a)  When  the  past  participle  is  accompanied  by  etre 
it  agrees  with  the  subject ;  ex. :  les  Presidents  sont 
elus  en  novemhre.  Presidents  are  elected  in 
November;  la  petite  s'est  reveillee,  the  baby 
(girl)   has  awakened; 

b)  when  the  past  participle  is  accompanied  by  avoir 
it  agrees  with  the  object  when  the  object  comes 
before,  not  so  if  it  comes  after;  ex.:  fai  fait  bien 
des  bevues,  I  made  many  blunders;  les  bevues 
que  j'ai  faites,  the  blunders  i  made; 

c)  the  past  participle  of  intransitive  verbs  never 
agrees,  ex. :  this  house  once  belonged  to  my 
mother,  cette  maison  a  appartenii  a  ma  mere. 


Note. 


1.  When  the  past  participle  is  followed  by  an  infinitive, 
ex.:  les  actrices  que  j'ai  vu  (or  vues)  jouer,  the 
ACTRESSES  WHOM  I  SAW  ACT,  modern  usage  is  strongly 
in  favor  of  the  participle  remaining  unchanged. 

2.  The  past  participles  pu,  du,  voulu,  never  change; 
ex.:  il  a  fait  tous  les  voyages  qu'il  a  voulu  (under- 
stood :  faire)  ;  he  took  all  the  journeys  he  wished. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  127 

PRESENT  INDICATIVE 

1 .  Is  not  the  present  sometimes  used  in  French  instead 

of  the  past,  as  in  English? 

Yes,  in  four  cases : 

1.  in  a  very  vivid  narration;  ex. :  Lafayette  comprend, 
il  quittc  VAmerique,  vole  en  France,  et  revient  avec 
de  I'or,  Lafayette  realized  the  situation,  left 
America,  flew  over  to  France,  and  came  back 
WITH  money; 

2.  in  the  very  frequent  phrase;  je  viens  de*  I  have 
JUST ;  ex. :  il  vient  de  sortir,  he  has  just  gone 
out; 

3.  in  the  phrases  c'est  moi,  c'est  lui,  etc.,  beginning  a 
sentence  referring  to  the  past ;  ex. :  c'est  moi  qui 
vous  ai  ecrit,  it  was  I  who  wrote  to  you  ; 

4.  in  sentences  like:  I  have  been  here  an  hour, 
je  suis  ici  depuis  une  heure  or  il  y  a  une  heure  que 
je  suis  ici. 

2.  Is  not  the  present  frequently  used  in  French  instead 

of  the  future? 

Yes,  colloquially,  as  in  English ;  ex. :  I  sail  on 
THE  fifth,  je  nt'embarque  le  cinq. 

IMPERFECT 

Does  the  English  language  possess  a  form  correspond- 
ing to  the  French  imperfect? 

The  word  imperfect  means  incomplete,  and  in 
the  language  of  grammarians  denotes  an  action 
which  is  not,  or  was  not,  entirely  past  at  the  time 
referred  to. 


128  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

We  possess  this  tense  in  English.  For  instance, 
the  word  smoked  is  certainly  an  imperfect — not  a 
past — in  a  sentence  like  the  following:  he  used 
TO  BE  SILENT  WHEN  HE  SMOKED,  U  se  taisait  gem- 
ralement  qiiand  il  fumait. 

But  we  must  notice  that  the  very  same  word, 
SMOKED,  is  much  more  frequently  used  to  denote 
an  action  completely  past,  for  example,  in  the  two 
following  sentences :  he  smoked  four  cigars  last 
night;  he  smoked  himself  ill,  which  the  French 
language  would  translate,  using  not  the  imperfect 
but  the  past:  il  a  fume  qiiatre  cigar es  hier  soir; 
il  a  fume  jusqu'a  se  rendre  malade.  The  conclu- 
sion should  be  that  the  shade  of  meaning  denoted 
by  the  imperfect  is  more  frequent  in  French  than 
in  English. 

In  reality  the  French  imperfect  is  generally  ren- 
dered in  English  by  the  progressive ;   ex. :    he  was 

SMOKING    (when   HIS  FATHER  WENT  IN),  H  fumait 

(quand  son  pere  entra),  or  by  the  words  used  to; 
ex. :  he  used  to  smoke  more  than  he  does  now, 
il  fumait  plus  qu'd  present. 

Note. 

In  sentences  like  il  fumait  quand  son  pere  entra — 
which  can  be  translated  in  EngHsh  by  the  progress- 
ive HE  WAS  SMOKING — the  French  language  fre- 
quently uses  etre  en  train  de,  ex.:  il  etait  en  train 
de  fumer  quand  son  pere  entra. 

SIMPLE  PAST  AND  COMPOUND  PAST 

1.  When   does  the   French  language   use  the  simple 
past? 

Except  in  the  South  and  in  a  few  regions  in  the 
West  of  France,  the. simple  past  {j'ecrivis,  je 
partis)    is  no  longer  used  colloquially  and  seldom 


FRENCH    GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  129 

appears  even  in  a  private  letter:  it  is  confined  to 
books  or  speeches  in  formal  style.  The  French 
replace  it  by  the  compound  past  (fai  ecrit,  je 
suis  parti)  which  is  a  considerable  loss  to  the 
language;  ex.:  I  wrote  to  him  last  week,  je 
lui  ai  ecrit  la  semaine  dernier e.  [But  in  formal 
style  the  sentence,  she  wrote  to  me  beseech- 
ingly, should  run  :  elle  m'ecrivit  d'un  ton  suppliant.] 


Note. 


The  tendency  of  many  English-speaking  people  ac- 
customed to  one  word  (i  wrote)  instead  of  two 
(j'ai  ecrit)  to  denote  the  past  is  to  use  the  imper- 
fect when  speaking:  French  instea  I  of  the  compound 
past.  Frequently  one  hears  them  say:  je  lui  ecrivais 
plusieurs  fois,  i  wrote  to  him  several  times,  in- 
stead of  je  lui  ai  ecrit.  We  should  remember  that 
we  are  on  no  account  to  use  the  imperfect,  unless 
we  can  mentally  retranslate  in  the  progressive,  for 
instance,  in  such  a  sentence  as  je  lui  ecrivais  quand 
it  entra,  (i  w^as  writing  to  him  when  he  came  in). 


PLUPERFECT 

Does    French    use    the    pluperfect    more    frequently 
than  English? 

Yes.    French  uses  the  pluperfect: 

1.  in  every  case  in  which  English  does;    ex.:  I  had 

tried     many    times    when    at    last    I    SUCCEEDED, 

favais  essaye  hien  des  fois  quand  eniin  je  reussis. 

2.  in  many  cases  in  which  we  use  the  simple  past; 

ex.  :    ON    MANY    OCCASIONS    IN    WHICH    I    TRIED    TO 

VAULT  OVER  THE  FENCE  I  FAILED,  en  de  nombreuscs 
circonstances  oil  j'avais  essaye  de  sauter  la  palissadc 
j'avais  cchoue. 


130  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Note. 

Pluperfect  means  "more  than  complete"  and  is  so 
called  because  it  denotes  a  past  action  which  came 
before  another,  also  past :  it  takes  our  memory  far- 
ther back  than  the  mere  past,  for  instance,  in  a  sen- 
tence like:  i  failed  or  i  tried  to,  which  conjures  up 
only  one  past  occurrence. 

FUTURE 

1.  Does  French  use  the  present  instead  of  the  future 

after  when,  as  soon  as,  the  moment,  when- 
ever, the  first  who,  etc.? 

No,  the  meaning  here  implied  is  future  and  the 
verb  is  in  the  future  in  French ;    ex. :  call  me  up 

THE    MOMENT   THE   DOCTOR   ARRIVES,    teUphoneZ-moi 

sitot  que  le  medecin  arrivera; 

we  use  the  imperfect  instead  of  the  conditional  in 
similar  sentences  referring  to  the  past,  but  here 
again   the    French   language   uses   the   conditional, 

ex.  :   YOU    WERE   to   call    me    up   the    moment   THE 

DOCTOR  arrived,  vous  devies  me  telephoner  sitot 
que  le  medecin  arriverait. 

2.  How   does   the   French   language  translate   /  am 

going  to  or  /  will  with  an  infinitive? 

By  jE  vAis»  which  has  become  a  sort  of  auxiliary 
of  the  future,  ex. :  I  am  going  to  buy  a  bicycle, 
je  vais  acheter  une  hicyclette,  I  will  go  to  his 
ROOM,  je  vais  aller  a  sa  chambre. 

Note. 

1.  Partly  on  account  of  will  meaning  voulolr,  partly 
because  je  vais  and  je  veux  sound  somewhat  alike, 
it  is  not  rare  to  hear  English-speaking  people  make 
the  mistake:  je  veux  aller  a  sa  chambre  instead  of 
je  vais. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  131 

However,  notice  that  the  interrogation  "will  you  go 
to  his  room  ?"  is  translated :  voules-vous  aller  a 
sa  chambref 

2.  Devoir  is  also  used  to  denote  the  future ;  ex. :  nous 
devons  dcmcnager^    we  are  to  move  out. 

FUTURE  ANTERIOR 

1.  What  is  the  meaning  of  the  term  "future  anterior"? 

English  grammarians  generally  call  this  tense 
future  perfect  (i.e.  future  past)  v^hich  no  doubt 
is  a  puzzling  expression.  The  French  is  clearer. 
Anterior  means  previous.  So  the  future  anterior 
announces  an  action  which  will  have  already  taken 
place  when  another  action  happens ;    ex. :    by  the 

TIME     YOU    GET    THERE     HE    WILL    HAVE    FOUND    AN 

INTERPRETER,  qiiaud  vous  arr'iverez  il  aura  trouve 
un  interprete. 

Note. 

The  French  tense  is  exactly  similar  to  the  English 
tense : 

il  aura  +     trouve. 

''he    will    have.      -f-      FOUND. 

2.  Is  not  the  future  anterior  more  frequent  in  French 

than  in  English? 

Yes,  it  is  /constantly  met  with  ih  sentences  in 
which  the  English  language  uses  must_,  probably, 

I    AM    AFRAID,    THERE    IS    NO    DOUBT,    with    the    paSt. 

For  instance,  people  whom  you  were  expecting  do 
not  turn  up  and  you  cast  about  for  the  causes  of 
their   delay :     "'it   must   have  rained""  or   ""they 

HAD  A   BREAKDOWN,   NO  DOUBt""  Or  ''I'u   AFRAID  THE 

BABY  IS  ILL.""  In  French  all  these  sentences  would 
include  a  future  anterior:  ''il  aura  plu" ;  "Us  au- 
ront  en  une  panne,  sans  doute" ;  le  bebe  aura  etc 
malade,  je  le  crains." 


132  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

CONDITIONAL 

1.  Cannot    the    conditional    be    replaced    by    another 
tense? 

Yes,  the  past  conditional  is  frequently  replaced  by 
the  subjunctive  pluperfect;  ex.:  it  would  have 
BEEN  EASY,  U  eut  He  facile. 

This  substitution  is  largely  a  matter  of  euphony 
and  the  conditional  can  always  be  used. 


Is  there  not  a  case  in  which  the  conditional  in 
French  can  never  be  translated  by  the  same 
tense  in  English? 

Yes,  French  newspapers  frequently  use  the  condi- 
tional to  announce  an  event  which  is  supposed  to 
be  probable ;  ex. :  le  president  demissionnerait,  le 
Senat  se  reunirait  le  18;  President  expected  to 
RESIGN,   Senate  probably  to  meet  on  the  18th. 


3.  What  is  the  French  translation  of  "if  you  should 
come"? 

The  same  as  that  of  "^if  you  came''  or  '"in  cAsii 
YOU  came''^  viz.,  si  vous  venies. 


Note. 


If   I    SHOULD    HAVE    MOVED    (or    HAD   1    MOVED)    I    SHOULD 

HAVE  BEEN  A  DEAD  MAN  is  frequently  translated  by: 
si  je  bougeais,  j'etais  un  homme  niort,  both  condition- 
als being  translated  by  the  imperfect..  This  usage 
recalls   the  narrative  present   {see  page  120). 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  133 

4.  Is    not    the    conditional    used    to    express    sudden 
feelings? 

Yes,  in  exclaniative  sentences  like:  "que  faimerais 
voir  Paris!"  How  i  wish  i  could  see  Paris!  je 
voudrais  deja  y  etre!  I  wish  i  were  there  al- 
ready!    que  je   detest erais   de   n'y  pouvoir  alter! 

How  I  SHOULD  hate  NOT  BEING  ABLE  TO  GO  THERE  ! 

SUBJUNCTIVE 

Introductory  Note. — The  subjunctive  is  in  constant  use 
in  French,  as  in  Latin.  It  is  a  highly  refined  form 
of  speech,  subtle  and  yet  accurate,  to  which  the 
French  language  owes  a  great  deal  of  its  elegance. 
Americans,  using  the  subjunctive  in  English  more 
frequently  than  the  British,  find  little  difficulty  in 
mastering  its   use  in   French. 

1.  What  is  the  meaning  of  the  word  subjunctive? 

The  word  Subjunctive  (Latin  subjungere,  to 
join  beneath)  means  "appended  to"  either  a  con- 
dition or  a  clause.  In  fact  we  use  it  in  English, 
exactly  as  the  French  do,  whenever  there  is  a 
restrictive  sense  implied  in  the  meaning  or  in  the 
construction  of  our  sentence ;  ex. :  unless  a  new 
prophet  arise  (condition).  I  suggest  that 
HE  GO  TO  Washington  (subordinate  clause). 
The  Subjunctive  is  sometimes  called  the  subject- 
ive MODE.  Seldom  is  a  play  on  words  so  illumin- 
ating, for  it  is  a  fact  that  the  subjunctive  fre- 
quently denotes  a  subjective  state  of  mind,  that  is 
to  say,  the  mental  attitude  we  have  when  we  con- 
sider   ourselves     {our  ideas,   wishes,   conjectures) 


134  FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

ra,ther  than  things  exterior  to  us.  When  we  point 
out  a  fact  we  naturally  use  the  indicative  (Latin  in- 
dicare,  to  point  at);  ex.:  I  know  he  is  dead, 
when  we  are  not  so  sure,  we  use  the  more  subjective 
form  of  speech ;  ex. :  if,  as  I  am  afraid  he  were 

DEAD. 

2.  What   are   the    cases   In    which    there  is  no  doubt 
that  the  subjunctive  must  be  used  in  French? 

a)  In  every  case  in  which  the  subjunctive  is  found  in 
either  classical  or  modern  English,  remembering 
that  the  subjunctive  in  English  is  denoted  not  only 
by  the  subjunctive  proper  {though  I  he,  though  I 
were)  but  also  by  the  forms  that  i  may  and 
THOUGH  HE  SHOULD;  ex. : 

1.  {Subjunctive   proper)  :    unless   your   son   re- 
pent,  a  moins  que  voire    His    ne    se    repente; 

WHETHER   THAT    MAN    CONSENT   OR    NOT,    que   Get 

Homme  cofisente  ou  non;    i  hough  he  be  sole 

HEIR,  hien  qu'il  soit  seul  heritier; 
1  WOULD  suggest  THAT  HE  WRITE :  je  coHsaillerais 
qu'il  ecrive; 

I  THEREFORE  PROPOSE  THAT  CoNGRESS  RECOG- 
NIZE. . . .,  Done,  je  propose  que  le  Congres  re- 
connaisse. . . . 

2.  {May)  :  I  say  this  that  you  may  fully  re- 
alize, je  dis  cela  pour  que  vous  compreniez  par- 
faitement; 

May  his  name  be  blessed!  que  son  nom  soit 
beni! 

3.  {Should)  :  I  am  sorry  she  should  think;  .je 
suis  fdche  qu'elle  croie ; 


/ 

FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 135 

What  a  pity  that  he  should  have  given  up 
music!     quel   dommage    qu'il   ait   ahandonne    la 
musique! 
h)     When   the   final   clause    of   a   sentence   includes   a 
verb  in  the  infinitive  ( 1 )  ;    ex. : 

HIS    FATHER    WANTS    HIM    TO    BE    A    DOCTOR,     SOU 

pere  vent  qu'il  soil  medecin; 

It  is  too  late  for  him  to  learn  music,  il  est 

trop   tard  pour  qu'il  apprenne  la  musique. . 

3.  In  what  cases  does  French  use  the  subjunctive 
though  the  verb  is  in  the  indicative  (present, 
past  or  future)  in  English? 

We  may  say  that  French  uses  the  subjunctive  in- 
stead of  our  indicative  wherever,  as  we  said  above, 

a)  the  person  who  speaks  expresses  his  own  state  of 
mind  (joy  or  the  reverse,  will,  etc.)  ;    ex.: 

I    AM    GLAD   that    YOU    ARE    COMING   TOO,    je   Suis 

heureux  que  vous  venies  aussi; 
He  is  SURPRISED  AT  YOUR  REFUSING,  U  s'etonm 
que  vous  refusiez; 

I     WAS     FURIOUS     AT     YOUR     NOT     HEARING     MF. 

j'stais  furieiix  de  ce  que  vous  ne  m'entendiez 
pas; 

b)  and  especially  when  a  certain  amount  of  uncertainty 
is  felt  in  the  sentence.  This  happens  chiefly  with 
verbs   indicating: 

1.  a  doubt;  ex.:  I  doubt    that    she    will    ever 
RECOVER,  je  doute  qu'elle  guerisse  jamais; 

2.  a  possibility;  ex.:  she  may  get  well,    il    est 
possible  qu'elle  guerisse; 


(1)    This   is   the   case    with    such    English    verbs   as   to    want,    TO    ORDER,    TO 
WISH,   etc.,   noting  the  action   of  the  will. 


136  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

Note. 

It  is  probable  that  she  will  get  well  is  translated 
by:  il  est  probable  qu'elle  guerira,  because  proba- 
bility shows  us  the  fact  as  if  it  actually  existed. 

3.  an  hypothesis ;  ex. :  Let  us  suppose  that  an 
ACCIDENT  OCCURS,  supposoHs  qu^ufi  accidefit  se 
produise; 

4.  a  negation ;  ex. :  I  do  not  see  that  he  is  so 
VERY  BRAVE,  je  He  vois  pas  qu'il  soit  si  brave, 
I  SAW  nothing  that  impressed  me  very  much, 
je  n'ai  rien  vii  qui  m'ait  beaucoup  frappe; 

5.  an  interrogation ;  ex. :  Is  it  true  that  war 
SOMETIMES  IS  A  BENEFIT?  est-H  vvai  que  parfois 
la  guerre  soit  un  bienf 

6.  a  concession ;  ex. :  Though  he  was  a  king, 
bien  qu'il  fut  roi;  Whether  he  comes  or  not, 
qu'il  vienne  ou  non. 

4.  Is  there  not  a  French   verb   after   which   the  sub- 

junctive is  always  used? 

Yes,  FALLoiR,  to  be  necessary,  when  followed  by 
que  ;  ex. :  it  is  necessary  for  me  to  leave,  il  faut 
que  je  parte;  i  had  to  leave,  U  fallwt  que  je  par- 
tisse;  i  shall  have  to  leave,  il  faudra  que  je  parte. 

5.  Are  there  not  many  adverbial  phrases  after  which 

the  subjunctive  is  always  used? 

Yes,  the   subjunctive  is  always  used  in  adverbial 

sentences  denoting: 
'^  1.  finality  or  purpose   {aiin  que  or  short  que,  in 

ORDER  that,  pour  que,  that,   de  manicre  que, 
in  such  a  way  or  so  that  ;     ex. : 


FRENCH   GRAMM/TR   MADE  CLEAR  137 

SPEAK    SOFTLY    SO    THAT    BABY    MAY    GO   TO    SLEEP, 

paries  bas  pour  que  bebe  s'endorme; 

EXPRESS   YOURSELF  IN   SUCH   A   WAY  THAT   EVERY- 
BODY    WILL    BE    SURE    TO    UNDERSTAND,    exprimez 

vous  de  maniere  que  tout  le  monde  soit  sur  de 
comprendre; 

2.  negation  or  restriction  {non  pas  que,  not  that, 
sans  que,  without,  followed  by  a  participle, 
a  uioins  que,  unless,  loin  que,  far  from,  fol- 
lowed by  a  participle,  de  peur  que,  lest)  ;  ex. : 
not  that  I  AM  afraid  OF  HIM,  nofi  pas  que  je 
le  craigne; 

HE  crept  OUT  WITHOUT  ANYBODY  HEARING  HIM, 

il  se  glissa  dehors  sans  que  personne  Ventendit; 

3.  previousness  (avant  que,  before,  jusqu'd  ce 
que,  UNTIL,  en  attendant  que,  while,  followed 
by  a  present  participle),    ex.: 

DO    NOT    MOVE    BEFORE    THE    LIGHT    APPEARS,     fie 

bougez  pas  avant  que  la  lumiere  paraisse, 

WAIT    HERE  TILL   SHE   COMES   BACK,     attendez    tCt 

jusqu'd  ce  qu'elle  revienne,  or  attendez  qu'elle 
revienne. 

Note. 

The  subjunctive  is  always  used  after  a  clause  contain- 
ing a  superlative  because  the  meaning  of  the  sen- 
tence is  restrictive ;  ex. :  the  most  cruel  bore  that 
EVER  tortured  ME,  Ic  raseur  le  plus  cruel  qui  m'ait 
jamais  torture. 

9.  What  tense  is  used  after  si,  if? 

It  seems  as  if  it  ought  to  be  the  subjunctive,  as  the 
sentence  inevitably  denotes  a  condition,  but  in  reality 
it  h  the   indicative,  because   the  condition   is   ima- 


138  FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

gined  as  already  realized.  However,  the  effect  of 
the  condition  implied  in  the  sentence  appears  in  the 
subordinate  clause,  which  is  in  the  subjunctive,  ex.: 
If  a  man  should  appear  and  mock  you....,  si 
quelqu'un  paraissait  (indie.)  qui  se  moqudt  (subj.) 
de  vous. 

Note. 

The  elaborate  form  si  j'eusse  voulu,  had  i  consented, 
s'il  fut  vcnu,  HAD  HE  TURNED  UP,  Can  always  be  re- 
placed by  the  indicative  pluperfect  si  favais  voulu, 
s'il  etait  venu. 

7.  What  is  the  concord  of  tenses  in  the  subjunctive? 

a)  When  the  verb  in  the  principal  clause  (g-enerally 
the  first  half  of  the  sentence)  is  in  the  present  the 
verb  in  the  subordinate  clause  should  be  in  the 
subjunctive  present;  ex.:  je  doute  qu'il  piiisse  vous 
payer,  I  doubt  if  he  can  pay  you; 

b)  when  the  verb  in  the  principal  clause  is  in  the 
past  or  the  conditional  the  verb  in  the  subordinate 
clause  is  in  the  subjunctive  imperfect,  if  the  person 
who  speaks  refers  to  something  having  happened 
simultaneously;  ex.:  I  did  not  think  he  was  ly- 
ing TO  ME,    jc  ne  croyais  pas  qu'il  me  mcntit; 

it  is  in  the  subjunctive  pluperfect  if  mention  is 
made  of  an  action  previous  to  the  time  alluded  to ; 
ex. :  I  did  not  suspect  he  had  told  a  lie,  je  ne 
soupgonnais  pas  qu'il  eut   menti. 


Note. 


The  subjunctive  imperfect  is  gradually  being  replaced 
by  the  present  on  account  of  the  comical  sound  of 
forms  like  de  peur  que  nous  nous  moquassions,  avant 
que  vous  n'oubliassie:^,  etc.  However,  it  is  retained 
in  the  third  pers.  sing,  (dc  peur  qu'il  ne  se  moqudt, 
avant  qu'il  n'ouhliat),  which  is  perfectly  euphonious. 


FRENCH    GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  139 

8.  What   method   should   we    follow    to    master    the 
rules  given  above? 

We  know  a  rule  thoroughly  when  we  begin  to  apply 
it  instinctively.  Only  practise  will  develop  an  in- 
stinct. The  best  kind  of  practise  should  be  the 
invention  of  sentences  exemplifying  the  rules.  Be- 
gin where  you  will  find  it  easiest,  that  is  to  say 
with  sentences  in  which  the  English  language  a; 
well  as  the  French  makes  use  of  the  subjunctive; 
ex.:  Though  he  be  a  King,  that  i  may  suc- 
ceed, LEST  HE  SHOULD  FORGET,  etc. ;  then  go  on 
to  adverbial  sentences  automatically  bringing  in 
the  subjunctive;  ex.:  avant  qu'il  ne  parte,  jusqu'a 
ce  que  je  menne,  etc.  You  will  soon  find  that  the 
subjunctive  will,  in  such  sentences,  seem  quite 
natural  to  you,  and  a  habit  being  thus  created,  you 
will  be  ready  to  go  on  to  cases  (like  those  described 
in  question  3)  requiring  a  little  more  attention. 

INTERROGATION— NEGATION 

INTERROGATION 

1.   What   difference   is   there   between   the   mode   of 
interrogation  in  English  and  in  French? 

The  French  language  has  nothing  comparable  to  the 
verb  TO  do  as  an  auxiliary  in  interrogative  senten- 
ces. So  whenever  we  interrogate  in  French  we  must 
dismiss  do  from  our  mind  (unless  of  course  the 
verb  is  faire),  and  think  of  simpler  forms  like  may 
I?  CAN  YOU?  HAVE  THEY?  NEED  I?  French  in- 
terrogations always  limit  themselves,  like  the  fore- 
going, to  simply  placing  the  pronoun  after  the  verb ; 
ex.:  May  I?  puis-jef  Does  he  come?  vient-il? 
Did  she  write?    ecrivait-ellef 


140  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

2.   Conjugate   a   verb   interrogatively  in   the   present 
indicative  and  the  past? 

Chanter,  to  sing. 
Present  Simple  Past 

Chante-jef  Do  I  sing?  Chant  at- je?  Did  I  sing? 

chant es-tuf  Dost  \\\o\\  smg}  chantas-tuf  Didst  thou 

sing  ? 
chante-t-il?  Does  he  sing?  chanta-t-ilf  Did  he  sing? 

chantons-nousf  Tiov^Qsmg}  chantames-nousf  Did  we 

sing? 
chantez-vons?  Doyousing?  chantates-voiis?  Did  you 

sing? 
chantent'ilsf   Do  they  sing?         chant erent-ilsf    Did  they 


Note. 


sing? 


1.  Chante-jef  is  not  the  mere  inversion  of  je  chcinfe: 
an  acute  accent  on  te  gives  clarity  to  the  sound. 

2.  In  chante-t-ilf  and  chanta-t-ilf  t  is  inserted  for  eu- 
phony. 

3.  Chantent-ilsf  is  pronounced  like  chante-t-ilf 


3.  Is  Chante-je?  in  frequent  use  in  modern  French? 

No,  it  is  practically  an  archaism. 
The  only  verbs  conjugated  in  the  first  person  in- 
dicative in  that  way  are:  ai-jef  (qu'ai-je  fait?)  — 
dis-je?  {que  dis-jef)  —  dois-jef  (dois-je  le  dire?) 
—  puis-jef  {oil  puis-je  alter f)  —  suis-jef  {qui 
suis-je  pour  oser,..?)  —  vois-je?  {que  vois-jef). 

Note. 

Puisse-je!  is  a  subjunctive  and  means  may  I! 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  141 

4.  What  is  the  form  used  in  modern  French? 

Est-ce  que?  is  in  constant  use  in  the  first  person 
indicative  and  tends  to  appear  in  most  interroga- 
tions ; 

Ex.:  Do  I  SING?  est-ce  que  je  chantef  Does  she 
SING?  est-ce  qu'elle  chantef  Will  she  sing?  est- 
ce  qii'elle  chanter  a? 


Note. 


The  best  French  usage  is  however  in  favor  of  chanle- 
t-ellef  and  chantera-t-elle?  Est-ce-que?  apart  from 
the  first  person  indicat.,  ought  only  to  be  used  when 
the  meaning  is:  is  it  because?  Ex.:  you  do  not 
SING.  Is  IT  BECAUSE  YOU  ARE  ILL?  Vous  lie  chautes 
pas.   Est-ce  que  vous  etes  maladef 


5.  How  does  the  interrogation  run  when  the  subject 
is  not  a  pronoun,  but  a  noun  or  an  infinitive? 

^)  iQ^^llQqtiial  French  the  noun  is  placed  before  the 
verb,  and  the  sentence  then  sounds  like  similar  in- 
terrogative sentences  in  English,  v^hich  were  it  not 
for  the  tone  used  in  speaking  or  the  note  of  in- 
terrogation in  print,  v^ould  not  be  interrogations 
at  all;  ex.:  Your  brother  is  coming?  (isn't 
HE?)  Votre  frere  vientf  Your  sisters  will  sing? 
Vos  soeiirs  chanter ont? 

h)     In   slightly  less   familiar  sentences  and  always  in 
sustained  style  the  pronoun  corresponding  to  the 
subject  (il,  ils,  elle^  elles)   is  added; 
ex.!  Is  YOUR  BROTHER  COMING?  Votrc  frcre  vient- 
it?  Will  your  sister   sing?   Vos  sceurs  chante- 


Mourir  n'est-il  pas  doux  parfoisf 


142  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


NEGATION 

1 .  What  difference  is  there  between  negative  senten- 

ces in  English  and  in  French? 

Eng-lish  uses  the  auxiliary  to  do  in  negative  sen- 
tences   (I    DO    NOT    WRITE,     You     DID     NOT     REAd)  ; 

French  does  not.  Negative  sentences  in  French 
resemble  very  nearly  those  negative  sentences  in 
English  from  w^hich  do  is  absent;  ex.:  I  have  not, 
je  nai  pas;  I  dare  not,  je  n'ose  pas;  I  know 
NOT,  je  ne  sais  pas. 
The  only  difference  is  that  instead  of  one  negation, 

NOT,  French  uses  two,  ne pas,  between  which 

the  verb  is  inserted. 

Note. 

t.  Je  n'ose  and  je  ne  sais  are  used  in  formal  speec!i 
for  ,/V  n'ose  pas,  je  ne  sais  pci^. 

2.  The   suppression   of  pas  after   si  is   frequent ;     ex. : 
Si  je  ne  craignais  de  vous  fatiguer,    if  i  were  not 

AFRAID  OF   tiring   YOU. 

3.  The  infinitive  is  placed  after  ne  pas;  .ex.:  etre  ou  nc 
pas  etre,  to  be  or  not  to  be. 

2.  What  is  the  French  for  "You  do  nothing"? 

**You  DO  nothing''  is  translated  by  ''vous  ne  faiies 
Hen"  (and  not  by  ''vous  fakes  rien")  :  that  is  to 
say  the  French  sentence  would  correspond  exactly 
to  the  illiterate  "you  do  not  do  nothing,  if  pas 
were  not  eliminated. 

Every  negative  sentence  including  the  words  ne . . , 
jamais,  never,  ne. . . plus,  no  more,  no  longer, 
ni,..ni,  neither.  .  .nor,  nulle  part,  nowhere, 
pas  de,    aucun,    no,    personne,   nobody,   and  rien. 


*;v<i  ■;*■    ;» 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  143 

NOTHING^  is  translated  in  the  same  manner,  leaving 
pas  out ;  ex. :  I  know  nobody  here^  jc  ne  connais 
per  Sonne  ici. 


Note. 


Personne,  norody,  and  Hen,  nothing,  used  as  subjects, 
are  followed  by  ne  ;  ex. :  Personne  n'est  venu,  nobody 
came;    Rien  ne  vous  plait,  nothing  pleases  you. 


3.  What    difference   is   there   between    ne  pas    and 
pas  de? 

Ne  pas  is  an  adverb   meaning  not^   while  pas  de 

is  an  adjective  meaning  no; 

ex. : 

Je  n'ai  pas  mon  argent,  I  have  not  my  money. 

Je  n'ai  pas  d'argent,         I  have  no  money. 


Resume 


What  rules  are  exemplified  in  the  following  sentences? 

J'aime  nager,  I   love   swimming. 

Avant  de  plonger,  Before  diving. 

En  plongeant,  While  diving. 

Que  penserf  What  could  I  think? 

Et  le  renard  de  courir,  Whereupon    master    fox 

ran  away. 

Fermer  la  porte,  Please  close  the  door. 

Des  livres  amusants,                    Amusing  books. 
Ces    livres    amusant     mon          As    these    books    amuse 
fils ,  my  son 


144 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Est-i\  venu? 

Non,  mais  sa  soeur  est 
venue, 

J'ai  fait  de  grandes  prome- 
nades, 

Les  grandes  promenades 
qu'il  a  faites, 

Sa  %ure  m'a  semble  in- 
telligente, 

Les  ballons  que  j'ai  vii 
gonfler, 

Les  ballons  que  j'ai  i^us 
s'elever. 


Did  he  come? 

No,  but  his  sister  did. 

I  took  long  walks. 

The  long  walks  he  took. 

His  face  seemed  intelli- 
gent to  me. 

The  balloons  I  saw  in- 
flated 

The  balloons  I  saw  rising. 


Je  glisse,  je  tomhe,  je  me 
b  I  esse, 

Je  viens  de  le  gronder, 

Cest  votre  frere  qui  tenait 
I'eponge, 

On  part  en  vacances  de- 
main. 


I  slipped,  fell,  and  hurt 
myself. 

I  have  just  scolded  him. 

It  was  your  brother  who 
held  the  sponge. 

The  school  breaks  up  to- 
morrow. 


Je  le  regardaw  tandis  qu'il 

grimpa«7, 
Comme    il    grimpait    !a 

branche  cassa, 

Je  vous  ai  gate, 
Un  prophete  s'eleva, 
J'avais  cm  vous  entendre, 

Rentrez  sitot  que  le  clairon 
sonnera, 


I    watched    him    as    he 

climbed. 
As  he  was  climbing  the 

branch  snapped. 

I  spoiled  you. 

A  prophet  arose. 

I  thought  I  heard  you. 

Come  home  the  moment 
the  bugle  blows. 


FRENCH    GRAMMAR    MADE   CLEAR 


145 


II  m'a  promis  de  rentrer 
quand  le  clairon  sonne- 
rait. 

Je  vais  y  penser, 
Ne  devez-vous  pas  acheter 
un  terrain? 

On  n^  les  voit  pas :  ils  se 
seronf  perdus, 


11  eut  mieux  valu  rester, J 
II  aurait  "  "  "  t 
La     Bourse     fermerait     le 

samedi, 
Si    voiis    etiez    venu,    vous 

gagmes  mille  dollars, 


Me  promised  to  come 
home  as  soon  as  the 
bugle  blew. 

I  am  going  to  think  of  it. 

Are  you  not  to  buy  a  lot  ? 

They  do  not  appear ;  they 
must  have  losit  their 
way. 

It  would  have  been  wiser 

to  stay. 
Stock  market  henceforth 

to   close  Saturdays. 
Had  you  come  you  would 

have  made  a  thousand 

dollars. 


Bien  que  la  loi  soit  muette,  Though     the     Act     say 


Je    suis    d'avis    que    vous 

alUez, 
Redites    cela    afin    que    je 

puisse  me  rappeler, 
Vive  la  France! 
Que     ses     destinees  soient 

paisibles ! 
11  est  bon  que  vous  sachiez, 

Je  voulais  que  vous  sachies, 
n   est   utile  que   vous   ap~ 
preniez  a  souffrir, 


nothing. 


I  suggest  that  you  go. 

Say  it  again  that  I  may 
remember. 

Long  live  France! 

May  her  future  be  peace- 
ful! 

It  is  good  you  should 
know. 

I  wanted  you   to  know. 

It  is  useful  for  you  to 
learn  how  to  bear  suf- 
ferinsf. 


146 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


II   s'impatlente    de  ce   que 

voiis  differiez, 
II    est    douteux    que    vous 

passiez   bien    votre    exa- 

.men, 
Est-il  possible  qu'elle  epoiise 

cet  homme? 
En    admettant    que    vous 

ayes  raison, 


He  is  growing  impatient 
at  your  putting  off 

It  is  doubtful  that  you 
will  pass  your  examin- 
ation. 

Is  it  possible  that  she  may 
marry   that  man? 

Granted  that  you  are 
right. 


Je  ne  suppose  pas  qu'il  soit 

millionnaire, 
Je  n'ai  jamais  vu  de  boxeur 

que     j'aie     trouve     be! 

homme, 


I  do  not  suppose  that  he 
is  a  millionaire. 

I  never  saw  a  pugilist  I 
really  thought  hand- 
some. 


Espere-t-il  que  Je  revienne 
cent  fois? 

Eaudra-t-il  que  je  lui  ecriz'c 
vingt   fois  ? 


Does  he  expect  me  to 
come  back  a  hundred 
times  ? 

Shall  I  have  to  write  to 
him  twenty  times  ? 


Parlez  pour  qu*on  vous  en- 

tendCj 
II  entra  sans  que  personne 

le  remarqudt, 
Avant  que  le  soleil  fut  leve, 
L'homme  le  plus  brave  que 

j'aic  connu, 
S'il  entrait  un  homrne  qui 

portaf  des  armes, 
Je  ne  crois  pas  qu'il  vienne, 


Speak  so  that  you  may  be 
heard. 

He  went  in  without  any- 
body  noticing   him. 

Before  the  sun  rose. 

The  bravest  man  I  ever 
knew. 

If  a  man  should  come  in 
carrying  arms. 

I  do  not  think  he  is  com- 
ing. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


147 


Je  ne  croyais  pas  qu'il  vlnt,  I  did  not  think  he  was 

coming. 
Je  n'aurais  pas  cru  qu'il  fut  I    could    not    have    sup- 

venu,  posed  he  would  come. 


Oil  coiirent-ellesf 

Se  moque-t-il  de  moi? 
Est-ce   qu'il    se   moque   de 

moi? 
La  partie  commence? 
La  partie  commence-t-elle? 


Where  are  they  running 

to? 
Is  he  making  fun  of  me? 

Is  he  making  fun  of  me? 
The  game  is  beginning? 
Is   the   game  beginning? 


Elles  ne  courent  pas, 

Si  je  n'esperais  vous  plaire, 

Ne   pas  oser  c'est  ne  pas 

reussir, 
Je  n'cntendis  rien, 
Pas  ^'effort,  pas  de  succes, 


They  do  not  run. 

If    I    did    not    hope    to 

please  you. 
Not   to   dare   is    not   to 

succeed. 
I  heard  nothing. 
No  effort,  no  success. 


D.     CLASSES  OF  VERBS 


Passive 

Intransitive 

Reflexive 

Reciprocal 

Impersonal 


148  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

PASSIVE    VERBS 

How  are  French  passive  verbs  conjugated? 

Exactly  as  in  English,  with  the  auxiliary  to  be; 
ex.:  It  is  written  that...  il  est  ecrit  que... 
However,  verbs  which  in  English  are  accompanied 
by  a  preposition  (to  be  spoken  to,  to  be  re- 
proached WITH,  etc.)  can  not  be  translated  liter- 
ally; the  verb  has  to  become  transitive  with  on 
as  a  subject;   ex.:  I  am  spoken  to,    on  me  parle; 

THE  ERRORS  YOU  WERE  REPROACHED  WITH,  les  faiitCS 

qu'on  vous  reprocha. 

INTRANSITIVE   VERBS 

1.  What  is  the  auxiliary   used  in  the   past  tenses  of 

intransitive  verbs  in  French? 

Till  the  seventeenth  century  it  used  to  be  avoir, 
TO  HAVE,  as  in  English,  (and  even  now  country 
people  frequently  say  fai  venu,  I  have  come,  fai 
monte,  I  have  walked  upstairs)  but  it  is  at 
present  etre,  to  be  ;  ex. :  they  had  walked  up- 
stairs. Us  etaient  monies,  before  they  went 
downstairs,  avant  qu'ils  ne  fussent  descendus. 

Note. 

The  following  verbs:  Cesser,  to  cease;  coucher,  to 
sleep;  demeurer,  to  dwell;  echouer,  to  fail; 
grandir,  to  grow  up  ;  paraitre,  to  appear  ;  and 
vieillir,  to  grow  old,  take  avoir. 

2.  Is   the  intransitive   verb   used    as    frequently    and 

conveniently  in  French  as  in  English? 

French  people  who  know  English  can  not  admire 
enough  the  flexibility  of  our  intransitive  verbs.   An 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  145 

intransitive  verb  in  English  can  be  accompanied 
by  various  prepositions  which  complete  its  meaning 
to  perfection  and  vividly  describe  the  action  in  its 
chronological  order.  For  instance,  v^hen  we  read 
the  words,  he  jumped,  we  see  a  man  jump,  and 
turning  over  the  page  we  see  by  the  words  in  or 
OUT  whether  the  jump  brought  him  into  a  place  or 
out  of  it.  The  effect  is  that  of  a  motion  picture. 
The  French  language  is  compelled,  in  order  to 
translate  such  a  short  sentence,  to  use  very  indefinite 
verbs  like  il  entra,  he  went  in,  or  il  sortit,  he 
WENT  OUT,  completed  by  the  words  d'un  saut,  with 
A  leap;  the  logical  order  is  spoiled  and  the  pic- 
turesque effect  is  missed  because  the  words  il  entra, 
il   sortit   are    infinitely   less   descrip^tive   than    he 

JUMPED. 

The  English  language  also  admits  of  reflexive 
pronouns  or  nouns  being  used  as  objects  after  an 
intransitive  verb,  which  produces  wonderful  effects 
of  the  same  kind:  French  is  too  analytical  (that 
is  to  say,  decomposes  the  elements  of  a  sentence  too 
much)  to  cope  with  such  condensation. 
For  instance,  sentences  like: 

IE    READ    HIMSELF     BLIND,     Or    DON't    YAWN    YOUR 

HEAD  OFF,  which  in  English  seem  so  natural  that 
even  children  imitate  them  at  once,  are  translated 
lengthily  and  somewhat  clumsily  by :  il  perdit  la  vue 
a  lire;  he  lost  his  eye-sight  by  reading,  A^"^  voiis 
demontc3  pas  la  tete  a  force  de  hailler,  do  not  un- 
screw your  head  by  dint  of  yav^ming. 


150  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

REFLEXIVE   VERBS 

1.  Are    there    more   reflexive    verbs   in   French    than 

in  English? 

Yes. 

a)  The  French  language  possesses  all  the  verbs  which 
are  reflexive  in  English,  that  is  to  say,  express  that 
the  subject  does  to  himself  the  action  indicated  by 
the  verb;  ex.:  he  often  hurts  himself  with 
THAT  knife^  //  se  hlcssc  soiivcnt  avec  ce  coUteau. 

h)  Besides- these  verbs,  the  boomerang  action  of  v^^hich 
is  truly  reflexive,  the  French  language  possesses  a 
great  many  other  verbs,  which  in  English  are  in- 
transitive but  in  French  are  conjugated  with  a 
reflexive  pronoun;  ex. :  I  repent,  je  me  repens;  he 
REMEMBERS,  U  sc  souvient ;  SHE  WORRIES,  elle  s'in- 
quiete.  These  verbs  are  called  pronominajl,  i.e. 
conjugated  with  a  pronoun. 

2.  Conjugate  a  reflexive  verb. 

Infinitive,  Se  hlesser, 

Part.  Pres.,  Se  blessanf, 

Past.  Part.,  S^etre  hlesse, 

Indie.  Pres.,  Je  me  hlesse, 

Tu  te  blesses, 
II  se  hlesse 
Nous  nous  hlessons, 
Vous  vous  hlesseB, 
lis  se  bless ent, 
Imp.,  Je  me  blessais. 

Simple  Past,  Je  me  blessai, 

Compound  Past,  Je  me  suis  hlesse. 

Pluperfect,  Je  m*etais  hlesse. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE   CLEAR  151 

Past  Anterior,  Je  me  fus  hlesse, 

Future,  Je  me  blesserai, 

Future  Anterior,  Je  me  serai  hlesse, 

Cond.  Pres.,  Je  me  hlesserais, 

'*       Past,  Je  me  serais  hlesse, 

Imperative,  Que  je  me  hlesse, 

Blesse-toi, 
Qu'il  se  hlesse, 
Blessons-nous, 
Blesses-vous, 
Qu'ils  se  hlessenf, 
Subj.  Pres.,  Que  je  me  hlesse, 

**      Imp.,  Que  je  me  hlessasse, 

"      Past,  Que  je  me  sois  hlesse, 

"      Pluperf.,  Que  je  me  fusse  hlesse, 

3.  What  particulars   are   especially   to   be   noticed  in 

this  conjugation? 

a)     The  reflexive  verb  sc  hlcsscr  is  conjugated  exactly 

like  the  transitive  verb  hlesser,  but  preceded  by  the 

reflexive  pronouns. 
h)     The  auxiliary  in  the  compound  tenses  is  not  avoir 

but  ctre.    I   have  hurt  myself,  je  me  suis  hlcssr 

and  not  je  m'ai  hlesse. 
c)     In  the  imperative  proper  the  pronouns  are  placed 

after  the  verb,  and  foi  is  substituted  for  te. 

4.  Conjugate  se  hlesser  interrogatively. 

Me  hlesse-jef 
Te  hlesses-tiif 
Se  hlesse-t-ilf 
Nous  hlessons-nousf 
Vous  hlessez-vous? 
Se  hlessent-ilsf 


152  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

Note. 

Me   hlesse-jef   in   colloquial   French    is   constantly    re- 
placed by:    Est-ce   que  je   me  blesse? 

5.  Are  there  other  verbs,  beside  the  intransitive,  that 
are  conjugated  like  reflexive  verbs? 

Yes. 

a)  A  few  passive  verbs ;  ex. :  ce  livre  se  vend  hien  for 
est  hien  vendu,  this  book  is  sold  a  great  deal; 
la  maison  se  bdtit  rapidement  for  est  hdtie,  the 
HOUSE  IS  BEING  BUILT  QUICKLY.  [The  English 
idioms,  this  book  sells  well;  the  house  is 
BUILDING  QUICKLY^  are  very  similar.] 

h)  Reciprocal  verbs,  i.e.  verbs  indicating  that  two 
subjects  act  on  each  other;  ex. :  Us  s'injurient,  they 
REVILE  EACH  OTHER;  les  iiafions  halkaniqiies  se 
hdissent,  the  balkan  nations  hate  one  another. 

IMPERSONAL  VERBS 

1.  Conjugate  an  impersonal  verb. 

Infinitive,  Pleuvoir,  to  rain. 

Pres.  Part.,  Pleuvant,  raining. 

Past  Part.  Phi,  rained. 

Ind.  Pres.,  //  pleut,  it  rains. 

"     Imp.,  //  pleuvait,  it  rained. 

Simple  Past,  //  pint,  it  rained. 

Comp.  Past,  //  a  plu,  it    has  rained. 

Plup.,  //  avait  plu,  it  had  rained. 

Past  Ant,  Jl  eut  plu,  it  had  rained,    it  rained. 

Put,  //  pleuvra,  it  will  rain. 

Fut.  Ant,  //  aura  plu,  it  will  have  rained. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  153 


Cond.  Pres., 

//  plcuvrait, 

it  would  rain. 

"      Past, 

II  aurait  phi, 

it  would,  have  rained. 

Imper., 

Qu'il  pleuve, 

Let  the  rain  fal) 

Subj.  Pres., 

Qu'il  pleuve, 

that  it  may  rain. 

*'       Imp., 

Qu'il  plut, 

that  it  might  rain. 

"      -Past, 

Q  It'll  ait  plu. 

that  it  may  have  rained. 

"       Plup., 

Qu'il  eut  plu. 

that  it  might  have  rained. 

Note. 

1.  There  is  no  difference  whatever  between  impersonal 
verbs  in  English  and   in  French. 

2.  A  number  of  French  verbs  are  formed  with  faire; 
ex.:  il  fait  froid,  it  is  cold,  il  fait  noir,  it  is  dark, 
il  fera  beau,  it  will  re  fine  weather.  They  gener- 
ally correspond  to  English  verbs  formed  with  it  is, 
and,  being  conjugated  only  in  the  third  person,  are 
nearly  akin   to   impersonal  verbs. 

3.  Phrases  like :  there  comes  a  time,  there  will 
APPEAR  A  man,  etc.,  are  translated  by  ordinary  verbs 
conjugated  as  if  they  were  impersonal:  il  vient  un 
temps,    il  paraitra  un  homme. 

2.  Which   impersonal    verbs   are  the  most  frequently 

met  with  in  French? 

They  are  y  avoir  and  falloir. 

3.  Conjugate  y  avoir. 


Inf.  Pres., 

Y  avoir, 

to  be 

Ind.  Pres., 

II  y  a, 

there  is,    there  are 

''     Imp., 

II  y  avail, 

there  was,  there  were 

Simple  Past, 

II  y  cut. 

there  was,  there  were 

Comp.     " 

II  y  a  eu. 

there  has  been 

Pkip., 

II  y  avail  eu, 

there  had  been 

Past.  Ant., 

II  y  eut  eu* 

there  had  been,  there  wa; 

Put, 

II  y  aura, 

there  will  be 

"    Ant., 

II  y  aura  eu, 

there  will  have  been 

154  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Cond 

..  Pres., 

//  3;  aurait, 

there  would   be 

<( 

Past, 

II  y  aurait  eii, 

there  would  have  been 

Imp., 

Qu'il  y   ait, 

let  there  be 

Sub. 

Pres., 

Qu'il  y  ait 

that  there  may  be 

(( 

Imp., 

Qu'il  y  eiit, 

that  there  might  be 

it 

Past, 

Qu'il  y  ait  eu, 

that  there  may  have  been 

it 

Plup., 

Qu'il  y  eut  eu, 

that    there    might    have 
[been 

1.  II  y  a  IS  both  singular  and  plural;  ex.:  there  is  a 
MATCH,  il  y  a  un  match;  there  are  fine  ath- 
letes, it  y  a  de  superhes  lutteurs. 

2.  There  being  no  doctor,  no  time,  etc.,  is  trans- 
lated rather  ponderously  by  comme  il  n'y  avail 
pas  de  medecin,   pas  asses  de  temps. 

3.  There  is  no  knowing,  no  saying,  etc.,  is  trans- 
lated by  on  ne  pent  savoir,  on  ne  pent  dire,  or  il 
n'y  a  pas  moyen  de  savoir,    pas  moyen  de  dire. 

4.  Does  not  il  y  a  frequently  occur  in  sentences  which 
in  English  do  not  include  there  is? 

Yes,  il  y  a  constantly  appears; 
a)     in  speaking  of  distances;    ex.:    Ya-t-il  loin?    Is  it 
FAR?  II  y  a  cinq  heures  {de  chemin  de  fer)  entrc 
New  York  et  Washington,   it  is  five  hours'  ride 
FROM  New  York  to  Washington  ; 

h)     in  speaking  of  time;    ex.: 

IT  IS  a  month  since  he  sailed,  il  y  a  un  inois 
qu'il  a  pris  le  bateau ; 

he  sailed  a  month  ago,  il  a  pris  le  bateau  il  y 
a  un  mois. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE   CLEAR 


155 


Note. 


When   an   action  is   still   in   progress,   the  French  use 
the  present  to  translate  the  past  in  English;    ex.:    i 

HAVE    WAITED    Or    I    HAVE    BEEN    WATTING    A    MONTPI    FOR 

THAT  MAN,  U  y  a  UH  mois  que  f attends  cet  homme, 

or  void  un  mois  que   fatfends   ret.   homme,  or  j'at- 
tends  cet  homme  dcputs  un  mois. 
Idioms:    il  va  y  avoir  un  mois  que,    it  will  soon  be 

A    MONTH    SINCE,     qu'y   Q-t-llf    WHAT    IS    THE    MATTER? 


5.  Conjugate  falloir. 


Inf., 

Ind.   Pres., 

"     Imp., 
P^>  Simple  Past, 
Comp.,     " 
Plup., 
Past.  Ant., 
Fut., 

"    Ant., 

Cond.  Pres., 
"      Past, 

Subj.  Pres., 
"      Imp., 
"      Past, 

''       Plup., 


Falloir, 
II  faut, 
II  fallait, 
II  fallut, 
II  a  fallu, 
il  avail  fallu, 
II  cut  fallu, 
Il  faudra, 
II  aura  fallu, 

Il  f  and  rait, 
II  aurait  fallu, 

Qu'il  faille, 
Qu'il  falliif, 
Qu'il  ait  fallu, 

Qu'il  exit  fallu, 


to  be  necessary 
it  is  necessary 
it  was  necessary 
it  was  necessary 
it  has  been  necessary 
it  had  been  necessary 
it  had  been  necessary 
it  will  be  necessary 
it  will  have  been  neces- 
sary 
it  would  be  necessary 
it  would  have  been  ne- 
cessary 
that  it  may  be  necessary 
that  it  might  be  necessary 
that   it   may   have   been 

necessary 
that  it  might  have  been 
necessary 


Note. 


1.  Not  only  to  be  necessary,  but  the  verbs  must,  to 
HAVE  TO,  and  ought  are  translated  by  falloir,  which 
in  consequence  is  probably  the  most  used  French 
verb;  ex.:  i  must  leave  you,  //  faut  que  je  vous 
quitfe;  must  you  go?  faut-il  que  vous  parties f  i 
HAD  to  tell  him  ;  il  fallut  que  je  lui  dise. 


156  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Devoir,  it  is  true,  is  also  used  in  sentences  like  the  fore- 
going,  but  it    only  indicates   a  probability;    ex.:    we 

ARE    TO    GO    TO    SEAL    HARBOR    IN    AUGUST,     flOUS    dcvOHS 

aller  a  Seal  Harbor  au  mots  d'aout. 

2.  Remember  that  the  verb  following  fallotr  is  invaria- 
bly in  the  subjunctive:  je  pars,  il  faut  que  je  parte, 
I  AM  LEAVING,  I  MUST  BE  LEAVING.  (;V  pars  =:  indic. ; 
que  je  parte  =  subj.) 


6.  What  is  the  meaning  of  il  me  faut? 

I  WANT  or  I  NEED,  cx. :  il  me  faut  uji  meilleur 
dictionnaire,  I  want^  or  I  need  a  better  diction- 
ary. 


7.  What  is  the  meaning  of  il  le  fautl 

It  IS  necessary  ;  ex. :  partes  a  Vinstant*  il  le  faut 
ahsolument,  leave  at  once^  it  is  absolutely 
necessary  ;  nous  reculCnnes,  iwus  r'lmrs  hicn  qiCil 
le  fallait,  we  fell  back^  we  found  it  was  ne- 
cessary. 


8.  Analyse  the  sentence:  il  va  falloir  partir. 

Translate   word   for  word : 

il  va        =  it  is  going 

falloir      =  to   be   necessary 

partir      —  to  go 

So  il  va  falloir  partir  =  it  is  going  to  be  neces- 
sary TO  GO,  or   I,   WE,  YOU   WILL  SOON   HAVE  TO   GO. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


157 


Resume 


What  rules  are  exemplified  in  the  following  sentences? 


He  has  not  been  written  to 
I  have  just  arrived 


He  wrote   me 
He  told  me 


{ 


about  it 


On  ne  lui  a  pas  ecrit 
Je  suis  arrive  a  I'instant 

II  m'a  raconte  cela 
dans  une  lettre 
dans  une  conversation 


She  ran     i 


out 


elle  est  entree  f 
,,  .  •    i  en  courant 

elle  est  sortie 


Do  not  ruin  yourself 

He   has   ruined   himself 

He  never  laments 

Get  up 

This  is  easily  understood. 

\)on't  you  punch  one  an- 
other 
It  is  thundering 
It  was  too  warm 
There  seems  to  be  a  lull 

There  is  a  man 
There  are  two  men 
There  being  no  train 

There  was  no  riding 

Is  it  two  miles? 
A  week  ago 


Ne  voKs  ruinez  pas 

II  s'est  mine 

II  ne  se  lament e  jamais 

Leze  '  toi 

Cela   se   comprend    sans 

peine 
Ne    voiis    donnez    pas    de 

coups 
II  tonne 

II  faisait  trop  chaud 
II  semble  y  avoir  une  ac- 

calmie 
.  J  un  homme 

t   deux   hommes 
Comme  il  n'y  avait  pas  de 

train 
II  n'y  avait  pas  wo\en  de 

monter  a  cheval 
Y  a-t-il  deux  milles? 
II  y  a  huit  jours 


158  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

I  must 

1  ought  to      -{hurry  //  fauf  que  je  me  depeche 

I  have  to 

Were   you   not   to    go   to  Ne    deviez-vous    pas    aller 

camp?  au  camp? 

I  wanted  a  kit  II  me  fallait  un  trousseau 

Sell  the  horses  ^'         Vendez  le  cheval,  il  le  fauf 

tyou   must  ^ 

It  is  going  to  be  necessary  //  va  falloir  payer 

to  pay. 


VI 
ADVERBS 

1.  What   French   adverbs  correspond  to  our  adverbs 
ending  in  ly? 

There  are  as  many  French  adverbs  in  ment  as 
there  are  English  adverbs  in  ly  and  they  generally 
correspond;  ex.:  politely^  poliment  (in  a  polite 
manner),  gravely,  gravement,    gaily,  gaiemcnt. 


Note. 


Ment    (Latin    mente)    was    a    feminine   ending   in    old 
French  as   in  Latin,    Hence   the   feminine  e  inserted 
before  ment  in  adverbs  like  fort-e-mcnt,  strongly. 
In  a  few  adverbs  this  e  becomes  e;  ex.:  obscur-e- 
ment,  obscurely. 


2.  Can  French  adjectives  be  used  as  adverbs? 

Yes,    BON,    CHER,   DROIT,    FAUX,    HAUT,    JUSTE,    LONG, 

NET,  RAs,  and  viTE,  are  frequently  used  adverbially. 
Notice  that  these  words  are  monosyllables  like  most 
English  adjectives  (right,  dear,  straight,  high, 
LONG,  etc.)  used  adverbially. 


3.  What  is  the  French  for  better  used  adverbially? 

MiEUx    (and   not   meilleur)  ;   ex.:     he   is   much 
better,  il  va  hcaucoup  mieux. 


160  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

4.  What    difference   is    there    between    comme    and 

comment? 

Comme  is  never  used  interrogatively;  ex.:  how 
ARE  YOU?  comment  allez-vous?  and  comment  is 
never  used  in  an  exclamation ;  ex. :  Hov^  well  you 
are!  comme  vous  allez  bien! 

5.  What  is  the  position  of  adverbs  in  French? 

French  adverbs  are  always  placed  after  the  verb, 
and  we  ought  to  remember  that  they  can  never  be 
placed  as  in  English  between  the  auxiliary  and  the 
past  participle ;  ex. :  I  see  clearly,  je  vols  claire- 
ment,  I  have  repeatedly  told  you,  je  vous  ai  dit 
frequemment. 

BiEN_,  souvENT,  and  rarement  are  the  only  ex- 
ceptions in  the  compound  past ;  ex. :  I  slept  well, 
j'ai  bien  dormi;  I  often  noticed,  j'ai  soiivent  ob- 
serve. 

AssEz  is  placed  before  the  noun ;  ex. :  bread 
ENOUGH,   assez  de  pain. 

6.  Underline  the  most  commonly  used  adverbs  in  the 

following  list: 

A.    ADVERBS  OF  QUALITY: 

asses,  enough  moins,  less 

autant,  as  much,  as  many  pen,    little,  not  much,  few 

beaucoup,        1    much  plus,    more 

bien,  J    many  tant,  so  much,  as  much 

combien,    how  much,    how  trop^  too  much 

many?  un  pen,  a  little,  a  few 
davantage,  more 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


161 


B.    ADVERBS  OF  TIME: 


a  la  fois,  at  the  same  time 

alors,  then 

apres-dcmain,  the  day  after 
to-morrow 

a  present,  now 

aujourd'hui,  to-day 

auparavnnt,  previously 

aussitot.  immediately 

autrefois,  formerly 

avant-hier,  the  day  before 
yesterday 

hientot,  soon 

cependant,  meanwhile 

d'ahord,  first,  at  first 

de  bonne  heure,  betimes, 
early 

deja,  already 

demain,  to-morrow 

depuis,  since  then 

depuis  quand,  how  long? 

des  lors,  from  that  time  for- 
ward 

desormais,  henceforth 

de  temps  a  autre,  from  time 
to  time 

dorenavant,  henceforth 

encore,  still,  again 


enfin,  at  last 

cnsuite,    next 

hier,  yesterday 

jadis,   formerly 

jamais,  ever   (with  ne*) 
never 

longtemps,    for  a  long  time 

maintenant,  now. 

naguere,  lately 

onques  (archaic)   ever 

parfois,,  now  and  then 

plus  (with  ne),  not  hence- 
forth, no  longer 

plus  tard,  later,  subsequent- 

ly 

plus  tot,  sooner 

puis,  then,  next 

quand,  when 

quelquefois,  sometimes 

souvent,  often 

sur-le-champ,  at  once,  im- 
mediately 

tantot,  by  and  by,  just  now 

tantot, . . .  tantot,  at  one 
time,  at  another 

toujours,  always 

tout-a-coup,   suddenly 


162 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


C.    ADVERBS 
ailleurs,  elsewhere 
alentour,  autoiir,  around 
autre  part,  elsewhere 
ceans  (archaic)  within 
ga  et  la,  here  and  there 
dedans,   within 
dehors,  outside 
derriere,  behind 
dessus,  above 
dessous,  below 
d'ou,  whence,  where  from  ? 

D.    ADVERBS 
ainsi,  so 

a  peine,  hardly  * 

asses,  sufficiently 
aussi,  (also)  as 
autant,  as,  as  much 
beaucoup,  much 
bien,  much,  very 
combien,  how  much?  how? 
comme,  how !  as,  as  it  were 
comment,  how? 
davantage,  more 
de  meme,  likewise 
encore,    still,    even     (with 

comparative.) 
ensemble,  together 
fort,  very 

giiere  (with  w^),  hardly 
mal,  mis — ,  in —  un — 
meme,  even 
moins,  less 


OF  PLACE: 
en  arriere,  behind 
id,  here 
la,  there 
loin,  far 

nulle  part,  nowhere 
oil,  where? 
partout,  everywhere 
par  OH,  which  way? 
pres,  near 

quelque  part,  somewhere 
y,  there. 

OF  MANNER: 

nullement  (ne),  in  no  way 

on  ne  pent  plus,  extremely 

peu,  not  very,  in — ,  un — 

plus,  more 

plutof,  rather 

pourquoiy  why? 

presquc,  almost 

quelque,  about 

quelque  peu,  somewhat 

quelque-  •  .que,  however 

si,  so,  as 

surtout,  above  all,  especially 

tant,  so,  so  much 

tellem,ent,  so 

tout,  quite,  however  {que) 

trh,  very 

trop,  too,  too  much 

un  peu,  somewhat,  to  some 

extent 
trop  peu,  too  little 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 163 

E.    ADVERBS  CONNECTING  CLAUSES: 

ainsi,       ]  ,.     ,  nonobstafit, notwiihsisind'mg 

.       I   so,  accordingly 
ausst,      j  or,  now 

car,   for  par      consequent,      conse- 

cependant,  however,  yet  quently. 

d'ailleurs,  besides  partant,  therefore,  hence 

done,  then,  therefore  pourtanf,  still,  yet 

du  reste,  at  the  same  time  toutefois,  all  the  same 

mais,  but  tou jours,  still 

neanmoins,  nevertheless 

7.  What  is  the  meaning  of  done? 

DoNc  really  means  therefore  and  is  frequently 
used  in  that  sense;  ex.:  therefore  i  will  stay 
HERE,  done,  je  reste  ici;  it  often  means  so,  if  so, 
and  in  this  connection  is  easily  replaced  by  alors; 
ex. :  so,  IF  so,  he  is  crazy,  il  est  done  fou  or  alors, 
il   est   fou. 

Finally  it  is  constantly  heard  as  an  expletive  recall- 
ing just  in  English ;  ex. :  just  come  here,  vencs 
done!  just  hold  your  tongue,  taisez-vous  done! 
JUST  listen,  ecoutes  done! 

Allans  done!  is  the  equivalent  of  nonsense  and 
dites  done!   the  equivalent  of  I  say. 

Note. 

The  final  c  in  donc  is  sounded  when  the  meaning  is 
THEREFORE  Of  SO ;  it  IS  mutc  in  other  cases,  because 
the  word  becomes  little  more  than   an  exclamation. 

8.  What  difference  is  there  between  si  and  ouil 

Si,'  or  si,  si,  or  mais  si  are  used  in  sentences  more 
or  less  sharply  contradicting  a  denial  and  corres- 
ponding to  oh  yes  !  or  why,  yes  !  Ex. :  ''he  is  not 
ill'' — 'Vhy,  yes,  he  is'',  ''il  n'est  pas  maladef — 
''Si,  il  Vest;  mais  si,  il  Vest! 


VII 
PREPOSITIONS 


1.  Give  a  list  of  French  prepositions. 


a,  to,  at 

apres,  after 

avant,  before  (time,  order) 

avec,  with 

chejs,  at,  or  to  the  house  of 

contre,   against 

dans,   in,  into 

de,   of,  from 

depuis,   since,  from 

derriere,    behind 

des,  as  early  as 

devant,  before 

en,    in,  into 


entre,   between,  among 
envers,   towards 
hors,   except 
outre,  besides 
malgre,   in  spite  of 
par,   by,  through 
parmi,    among 
pour,    for 
sans,   without 
selon,   according  to 
sous,   under 
sur,    upon 
vers,    towards 


2.  Give  a  list  of  other   words  and   phrases    used   as 
prepositions. 

d  has  de,  down  from 
a  cause  de,  because  of 
d  coti  de,   beside 
a  {an)  defaut  de,   failing 
a  force  de,  by  dint  of 
a  moins  de,    short  of 
d  trovers,  ^  through 

au  travers  de,  J  across 


en  arriere  de,   behind 
en  avant  de,   in  front  of 
en  has  de,  at  the  bottom  oF 
en  depit  de,   in  spite  of 
en  rats  on  de,    according  to 
excepts,    except 
faute  de,    for  want  of 
hormis,   except 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


165 


au'dela  de,  beyond 
ail  devant  de,  to  meet 
au  dehors  de,  outside 
au-dessous  de,  below 
au-dessus  de,   above 
au  lieu  de,   instead  of 
durant,   during 
au  prix  de,    compared  to 
aupres  de,  near,  compared 

to 
autour  de,   round 
d'apres,  according  to 
d'avec,  from  among 


hors  de,   out  of 

,,      r  up  to 
/«^9««'    I  down  to 
le  long  de,  along 
lors  de,  at  the  time  of 
moyennant,  in  exchange  for 
pendant,  during 
pres  de,   near 
quant  a,   as  for 
sauf,    except,  save 
suivant,  according  to 
touchant,    concerning 
vui   seeing  that. 


VIII 
CONJUNCTIONS 

1.  How  are  conjunctions  classified? 

Conjunctions  are  a)  coordinative,  i.e.  connecting 
clauses  which  might  be  left  separate;  ex:  he  is 
RICH,  BUT  HE  IS  STUPID;  b)  subordinativc,  i.e, 
connecting  two  clauses  one  of  which  would  be  in- 
complete without  the  other ;    ex. :  he  wrote  that 

I    MIGHT     BE    informed. 

But  is  a  coordinative,  and  that  a  subordinativc 
conjunction  in  these  sentences. 

2.  Give  a  list  of  coordinative  conjunctions. 


et, 

and 

et...  et. 

both . . .  and 

ou. 

or, 

OU.  .  .    OUf 

either ...  or 

ni 

nor 

ni. .:  ni. 

neither.  .  .nor  (requires  ne, 

with  the  first  verb) 

mads, 

but 

que. 

than,  as 

3.  Give  a  list  of  the  real  subordinative  conjunctions. 

There  are  only  four: 

que  that 

si  if 

comme  as 

-  v         quand  when 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  167 

4.  Give  a  list  of  the  conjunctions  including  que, 

a)  Governing  the  indicative. 
1.  Temporal 

'■"■^^f '    \  when 
or  quand,     J 

apres  que,  after 

avant  que,    before 

aussitot  que,   as  soon  as 

, ,  1  from  the  moment 

des  que,  >    . 

^      J  when,  as  soon  as 

depuis  que,    since 

a  peine. . .  que,  scarcely. . .  when 

tandis  que,      ^ 

pendant  que,  j 

tant  que,   as  long  as 

en  attendant  que. 


Note. 


"'^'  1  until 
jusqua  ce  que,      j 


En  attendant  que  and  jusqu'a  ce  que,  until,  govern 
the  subjunctive. 


2.  Causal 

parce  que,   because 

puisque,    since 

attendii  que, 

vu  que, 

comme,    as,  inasmuch  as 


I  seeing  that 


3.  Comparative 

a  mesure  que,  )    , 

.  y  m  proportion  as 

a  proportion  que,  J 


ainsi  que,   as 


168  FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


loin  que,    far  from 

selon  que,     1  .. 

>  according  as 

suivant  que,  J 

de  meme  que,  just  as 

comme,    as 

h)     Governing  the  subjunctive. 

1.  Final 

aiin  que,   in  order  that 
de  crainte  que,   lest 
de  peur  que,    lest 
pour  que,  in  order  that 

2.  Consecutive 

de  maniere  que,   so  that 
de  sorte  que,    so  that 
de  fagon  que,    so  that 
sans  que,   without 

3.  Concessive. 

•         ^'!''1"''    I  though 
bien  que,  j 

encore  que,   even  though 

malar e  que  ^  .i.       i     ^ 

^  I    even  though 

nonohsfant  que,  J 

soit  que. . .  sott  que,   whether. ...  or 

quand,  quand  meme,  (with  conditional) 

even  though 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  169 

4.  Conditional. 

si  or  que  si  if  (takes  plup.  subj ;  ex. :  s'il  m'eut 

cru) 

pourvu  que,  provided 

suppose  que,    ^ 

admettont  que,]       ^^         ^ 

a  moins  que,    unless 

pour  peu  que,  if.. .  at  all 

en  cas  que, 

^  m  case 


au  cas  que 


:}' 


IX 

EXCLAMATIONS 

Most  exclamations  can  not  be  translated  literally. 
They  can  be  learned  with  the  greatest  ease  by  con- 
versation, but  their  use  is  divined  rather  than 
explained. 

In  French,  as  in  English,  exclamations  constantly 
become  obsolete  and  are  replaced  by  others.  Mor- 
hleu!  tudieu!  palsambleuf  mordieu!  etc.,  are 
still  read,  but  they  are  never  heard. 

The  following  exclamations  are  the  most  frequently 
heard : 

To   CALL  SOMEBODY  ! 

Oh!  —  ho!  holloa! 

ohe!  Eh!  Id  has!  —  holloa,  you  over  there! 

alio!  (at  the  telephone)  —  hello! 

Dites  done,  la  has!  —  I  say,  you  over  there! 

To  AFFIRM  : 

Bien  sur!  ■■ —  certainly! 

Surement,  —  certainly! 

Assurement,  ^-  undoubtedly! 

Certes!  certes  oui  —  yes,  yes  indeed ! 

Sur  ma  foi!  —  upon  my  faith ! 

Ma  parole  d'honneur!  —  upon  my  word  of  honor! 

Parfaitementf  —  I  mean  it,  absolutely ! 

Naturellement!  —  of  course! 

Dame!  (to  one's  self)  —  of  course! 

Tones  —  Ecoutez!  —  Look  here!  Listen! 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  171 

To  admit: 

Tres  hien,  fort  bien!  —  granted! 
Soit!  —  granted! 

A  la  bonne  heure!  —  that's  right!    well  and  good 
A  merveille!  —  quite  right 
Sans  doute!  —  naturally 
Juste!  —  right! 

Entendu!  —  I  agree,    all  right. 
Bon!  —  all  right. 
Convenu!  —  agreed,    all  right 
Par  fait!  —  I  fully  agree 
Ma  foi!  —  after  all  (you  are  right.) 
Va  pour  (le  theatre,  le  cercle,  etc.)  —  the  theatre, 
the  club,  by  all  means! 

To   ADMIT   WITH    SATISFACTION: 

Pour  sur!  —  of  course! 
Je  crois  bien!  —  I  should  say  so! 
Je  vous  crois!  —  rather! 
Dame!  —  of  course! 

To    CONTRADICT  : 

Pardon!  —  I  beg  your  pardon 

du  tout,  pas  du  tout,  —  not  at  all 

pas  le  moins  du  monde,  —  not  in  the  least 

allons  done!  —  nonsense! 

jamais!  —  never! 

Allons!  allons!  —  come,  come! 

jamais  de  la  vie!  —  never  in  the  world 

certes  non!  —  no,  indeed! 

Pensez  done!  —  just  think! 

chut!  —  mum!    hush! 

taises-vous!  —  hold  your  tongue! 

silence  —  silence! 


172  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

To     DENOTE    SURPRISE  :       . 

Bah!  —  bah! 

Vraiment!  —  really! 

Tiens!  —  really! 

Sapristi!  —  by  Jove! 

Pas  possible!  —  impossible,  you  don't  say  so! 

Quel  conte!  quelle  hisioire!  —  Tell  it  to  the  marines  ! 

Diantre ! 

Fichtre!      ^         the  deuce! 

Bigre! 

To  DENOTE  embarrassment: 

Diahle!  —  the  d^uce! 

Mais! . . .  —  why!. . . 

Hum!...   —  H'm! 

Voyons,  voyons!  —  Let  me  see! 

Attendez  un  pen!  —  wait  a  minute! 

When  shocked: 

Mon  Dieu!  —  Dear  me! 

Que  dites-vous  la?  —  you   don't  mean  it! 

Horreur!  —  shocking! 

C'eSi  affreux!  —  horrible! 

To  warn: 

Attention!  —  careful! 
Gare!  —  look  out! 

To  encourage: 

Va  (ex.:  ga  ira,  va) — it  will  be  all  right!  you'll  see 
Vive. . .  /  —  hurrah  for. .  .  !    Long  live.  . .  ! 
Allons  y!  —  go  ahead! 
Marche!  —  go  ahead! 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  173 

Hardi!  Courage!  —  cheer  up. 
Bravo !  —  hear,  hear !    well  done ! 
Bis!  —  encore! 
Vas-y-donc!  —  never  fear! 
Tiens  bon!  —  hold  on! 

To  mock: 

Ta  ta  ta,  —  tut,  tut. 
Turliitutu!  —  Fiddlesticks! 
Flute!  —  Diddlededee! 

To  SHOW  contempt: 

A  has!  —  down  with. . .  ! 
Conspuez!  —  down  with. . .  ! 

To  DENOTE  irritation: 
Zut!  —  pshaw! 

In  terror: 

Bonte  divine!  —  good  gracious! 

Oh!  mon  Dieu!  —  good  heavens! 

Au  secours!  —  help! 

Au  feu!  —  fire! 

Au  voleur!  —  thieves! 

A  V assassin!  —  murder! 

Sauve  qui  peut!  —  every  man  for  himself. 

In  pain  : 

Ate!  —  ah! 

Oh!  la  la!  — oh,  my!  (Also  used  flippantly). 

Oh!  mon  Dieu!  —  my  goodness! 

When  giving  something: 
Tenes!  —  here! 
Voila!  —  there! 


i 


c 

1 


GALLICISMS 


176  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


GALLICISMS 

The  ways  of  speaking  or  phrasing  peculiar  to  the 
French  language  are  called  Gallicisms.  The  follow- 
ing are  the  most  frequent  Gallicisms  arranged  in 
the  order  of  the  parts  of  speech. 
The  only  way  to  make  oneself  familiar  with  these 
idioms  is  to  examine  the  examples  carefully  and 
imitate  them  in  short  simple  sentences  of  one's  own. 

DEFINITE  ARTICLE 

1.  He  broke  his  arm, 

//  s'est  casse  le  bras. 

Possessive  adjectives  are  replace'd  by  the  definite 
article  before  nouns  indicating  the  parts  of  the 
body. 

2.  He  has  a  small  head, 
//  a  la  tete  petite. 

The  indefinite  article  is  also  replaced  by  the 
definite  in  the  same  case. 

3.  We  paid  ten  cents  a  dozen  for  eggs, 
On  payait  les  oeufs  dix  sous  la  douzaine 

The  indefinite  article  is  also  replaced  by  the 
definite  in  sentences  indicating  prices  or  fre- 
quency (twice  a  week,  deux  jots  la  semaine). 

4.  I  come  from  France,  I  am  going  to  Canada, 
J'arrive  de  France,  je  vais  an  Canada. 

logically  we  should  say :  j'arrive  de  la  France, 
but  the  definite  article  is  left  out  before  names 
of  countries  in  the  feminine. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  177 

Before  the  same  names  in  is  translated  by  en. 
The  French  say:  en  Amerique,  en  Angleterre, 
because  Amerique  and  Angleterre  are  feminine, 
but  they  say:  aux  Etats-Unis,  au  Japon,  because 
these  names  are  masculine. 


INDEFINITE  ARTICLE 

1.  He  is  a  doctor, 
//  est  medecin. 

The  indefinite  article  a,  an,  is  left  out  before 
attributes  or  nouns   in  apposition. 

2.  This  devil  of  a  man, 
Ce  diable  d'homme. 

The  same  suppression  takes  place  when  the 
second  noun  denotes  the  same  person  as  the  first. 

3.  Was  there  ever  a  more  terrible  war? 
Y  eut-il  jamais  guerre  plus  cruelle? 

The  same  suppression  is  usual  after  jamais, 
even  when  there  is  no  interrogation ;  ex.  *.  jamais 
gargon  ne  fut  plus  heureux,  never  was  a  boy 

MORE    DELIGHTED. 


PARTITIVE 

Robust  children, 

Des  enfants  rohustes*  de  rohusfes  enfants. 

The  partitive  should  be  des  when  the  adjective 
is  after  the  noun;  it  should  be  de  when  the 
adjective  precedes  the  noun. 


178  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

2.  To  drink  good  coffee;    we  drank  good  coffee, 
Boire  de  bon  cafe;    nous  avons  bu  du  bon  cafe. 

The  partitive  is  de  when  the  meaning  is  general ; 
it  becomes  du  the  moment  an  individual  action 
is  recorded. 

3.  Nothing  more  tedious, 
Ricn  de  plus  ennuyeux. 

De  is  added  before  a  comparative. 

NOUN 

1.  Passengers  are  requested  to  lower  their  heads, 
Les  voyageurs  sont  pries  de  baisser  la  tete. 

The  French,  bearing  in  mind  the  individual,  often 
use  the  singular  where  English-speaking  people, 
seeing  the  collectivity,  use  the   plural. 

2.  You  little  silly! 
Petit  sot! 

You  preceding  a  vocative  is  left  out  in  French. 

3.  Mr.  X.   is  away;  this  gentleman  says... 
Monsieur  est  absent;  monsieur  dit. . . 

Servants  speak  of  their  master  as  monsieur  ; 
used  by  other  people  it  is  more  polite  than  ce 
monsieur. 


ADJECTIVE 

A  navy  blue  gown, 

Une  robe  blcu-marine. 

Compound   adjectives    indicating   colory   are   in- 
variable   (bleu   instead   of    bleue). 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  179 

2.  A  scanty  dinner,    a  fish  dinner, 
Un  maigre  diner,    un  diner  maigre. 

In  a  few  cases,  which  usage  teaches  easily,  the 
meaning  of  the  words  varies  according  to  the 
place  of  the  adjective. 

3.  He  is  remarkably  stupid! 
//   est  d'lin   bete! 

Adjectives  are  frequently  used  instead  of  nouns 
in  familiar  exclamations;  however  tl  est  d'une 
betise!  is  also  frequent. 

4.  Your  aunt. 
Mademoiselle  voire  tante. 

French  politeness  still  insists  on  softening  the 
possessive  adjective  by  a  title  when  you  speak 
to  a  person  of  a  member  of  his  family. 

5.  The  more  he  says,  the  less  I  believe  him, 
Plus  il  parle,  moins  je  le  crois. 

The  definite  article  is  omitted  in  the  double 
comparative. 

6.  The  same  words,  the  very  words, 
Les  memes  mots,  Ics  mots  memes. 

Meme  meaning  same  always  precedes  the  noun; 
meaning  very  it  follows  it. 

Note. 

Meme,  an  adjective,  ought  not  to  be  confused  with 
MEME,  an  adverb  meaning  even,  or  with  lui-meme, 
himself;  ex. :  Meme  mon  chien  ne  me  reconnut  pas, 
EVEN  MY  DOG  DID  NOT  KNOW  ME;  moit  chieti  mime 
ne  me  reconnut  pas,  my  very  dog  did  not  know  me. 

7.  Such  a  swimmer, 
Un  tel  nageur. 

Tel  in  French  takes  the  place  of  an  ordinary 
adjective  (comp.  un  ban  nageur). 


180  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

Idiom — Tel  quel  or  telle  quelle,  means  as  he, 
SHE,  or  IT  IS ;  ex. :  je  prendrai  la  maison  telle 
quelle,  I  will  take  the  house  as  it  is. 

8.  The  other  day,  the  summer  before  last, 
L'autre  jour,    I'autre  ete. 

L'autre  jour  only  means  a  recent  date,  l'au- 
tre ete  means  the  summer  before  last  (as  in 
English  EVERY  other  year). 

9.  Every  man,    on  every  occasion. 
Tout  homme,  en  toute  occasion. 

Tout  meaning  every  or  all  can  take  the  fem- 
inine like  any  other  adjective. 

The  whole  of  Rome  was  there. 

Tout  Rome  y  etait. 

When  TOUT  means  the  whole  of  a  city  it  is 
invariable. 

Elles  etaient  toutes  honteuses, 

They  were  quite  ashamed. 
Singularly  enough  quite,  an  adverb,  is  translated 
by  tout,  adjective,  which  is  variable. 

PRONOUNS 

a)  Personal  pronouns. 

1.    I  love  and  revere  him, 
Je  Vaime  et  le  revere. 

The  personal  pronoun  is  not  repeated  before  the 
second  verb  when  its  meaning  is  somewhat  sim- 
ilar to  that  of  the  first. 


Note. 


The   same   suppression   is   frequent   in   legal    formulas; 
ex.:  je  donne  et  Icgue,  I  will  and  bequeath. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 181 

2.  Albert  and  I  were  saying, 
Albert  et  moi  (nous)  disions. 
My  brothers  went  away,  I  stayed, 
Mes  freres  partirent,  moi  je  restai. 
It  was  I  whom  they  elected, 
C'est  moi  qu'on  a  elu. 

Moi  is  frequently  used  as  a  subject  when  it  is 
coupled  with  a  noun  or  more  or  less  emphasized. 

3.  We,   you. 

Nous  aiitres,    vous  autres. 
Nous,  vous,  become   nous  autres    (cf.   Spanish 
nosotros),  vous  autres,  when  the  sentence  indicates 

a  distinction  or  separation ;  ex. :  nous  autres  Fran- 
gais  rions  meme  de  nos  malheiirs,    we  French 

PEOPLE   LAUGH    EVEN   AT  OUR  OWN   MISFORTUNES. 

Note. 

Eux  AUTRES  is  a  provincialism. 

4.  I  said  in  that  book 

Nous  disions  dans  ce  livre. .  • 

Writers  and  teachers  frequently  associate  their 
readers  or  classes  with  themselves  and  use  the 
plural  pronoun  instead  of  the  singular. 
In  the  same  way,  nous  n'avons  pas  su  notre  le- 
gon,  nous  n'avons  pas  ete  sage,  said  in  an 
indulgent    tone    means:     you    did    not    recite 

YOUR   lesson    well,     YOU    HAVE    NOT   BEEN    GOOD. 

This  may  be  said  to  one  or  to  several  people. 

5.  I  wrote  to  your  Excellency  asking  you .... 
Pai  ecrit  a  votre  Excellence,  la  priant-  • . . 

The   feminine  pronoun  is   used  after  a  title  of 
courtesy  in   the  feminine ;    ex. :    voire  Majeste, 


182  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

Your  Majesty;  Voire  Altesse,  Your  Highness; 
Voire  Grandeur,    Your  Grace. 

6.  He  took  his  stick  and  began  to  use  it . . . 
//  te  prend  son  bdion  ei  s'en  seri. . . 

Vous  or  TE  are  frequently  used  pleonastically  in 
vivid  narrations  (cf.  your  American  thinks  noth- 
ing of  a  thousand  mile  trip). 

7.  Seeing  a  drum  he  sat  on  it, 
Voyani  un   tambour  il  s'assii  dessus. 

It  is  frequently  left  untranslated  after  a  prep- 
osition. 

Use  of  MOi  and  lui  : 

1.  He  looks  at  me,    look  at  me. 
//  me  re  garde,    regardez-moi. 

The  English  pronoun  me  is  always  translated  by 
ME  preceding  the  verb,  except  in  the  imperative, 
where  it  is  translated  by  moi  following  the  verb. 

Note. 

Even  in  the  imperative  me  is  translated  by  me  when 
there  is  a  negation ;  ex. :  do  not  look  at  me,  ne  me 
regardes  pas. 

2.  He  speaks  to  me,    speak  to  me, 
//  me  park,  parlez-moi. 

To  me  is  translated  by  me,  except  in  the  im- 
perative unaccompanied  by  a  negation,  where  it 
is  translated  by  moi   (not  a  moi). 


Note. 


To  ME  is  translated  by  a  moi  only  after  verbs  denoting 
motion;    ex.:  he  came  to  me^  il  vint  a  moi. 


FRENCH   GRAAIMAR   MADE  CLEAR  183 

3.  Bring  that  book  to  him,   take  it  away  from  him, 
Apportez  lui  ce  livre,    reprenez-le  lui. 

Lui  translates  both  to  him  and  from  him. 

4.  Let  him  do  as  he  pleases, 
Laisses  lui  faire  ce  qui  lui  plait. 

Him  is  translated  by  lui  instead  of  le,  (ex. ; 
laissez  le  faire)  when  the  verb  following  him 
is  completed  by  a  clause. 

5.  I  saw  him  do  wonders, 

Je  lui  ai  im  faire  des  merveilles, 

Lui  is  also  used  instead  of  le  when  the  sentence 
denotes  admiration   or  contempt. 

Idioms — chez  lui,    at  his  home, 

des  idees  a  lui,    ideas  of  his  own, 
c'est  mal  a  lui,    it  is  wfong  of  him. 

REPETITION  OF  PRONOUNS 

Pronouns   are    frequently    repeated    in    French    in 
the   following  cases : 

1.  to   show   distinction;    ex.: 

Our  maid  who    (better  than  the  others)   knew 

the  road, 
Notre  bonne  qui,  elle,  connaissait  le  chemin. 

2.  in  emphasis ;    ex. : 

What  gives  us  Americans  the  right  to  say. . . 
Ce  qui  nous  donne  a  nous  Americains  le   droit 
de  dire. . . 

3.  in  explanation ;    ex. : 

War  had  impoverished  both  of  us. 

La  guerre  nous  avait  appauvris,  lui  ef  moi. 


184  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

Le,  la,  les,  as  pronouns: 

1.  Are  you  the  qiie^n?    Yes,  I  am   (she). 
£tes-vous  la  reinef    Out,  je  h  suis. 
Are  you  the  doctors?    Yes,  we  are, 
j^tes-vous  les  medecinsf  Oui,  nous  les  sommes. 

When  the  meaning  of  the  sentence  points  more 
to  an  individual  than  to  his  quality  le,  la,  les 
are  used  according  to  the  gender  and  number, 

2.  Are  you  a  queen?    Yes,   I  am   (one), 
^tes-vous  reinef    Oui,  je  le  suis. 

Are  you  doctors?    Yes  we  are, 

&tes-vous  medecinsf    Oui,  nous  le  sommes. 

When,  on  the  contrary,  quality  is  emphasized  in 
the  question,  only  le  is  used  in  the  answer. 

3.  Pleonastic  use  of  le: 

Jealous  she  was  and  she  will  be, 
Jalouse  elle  I'etait  et  le  sera. 
As  much  as  I  can  (do  so"),  T  help  the  poor 
Autant  que  je  le  puis,  j'aide  les  malheureux. 
Le  in  the  first  sentence  repeats  jalouse  and  in 
the  second  it  sums  up  aider  les  malheureux. 
Idioms — Le  ceder,    to  give  in 

Uemporter,    to  conquer 
Ue  chap  per  belle,  to  have  a  narrow  escape 
'  Le  disputer  a,    to  vie  with. 

This  usage  recalls  English  phrases  like  to  rough  it, 
TO  THINK  IT  better  TO,  in  which  IT  is  also  pleo- 
najstic. 

Pleonastic  use  of  en: 

1.    Rich  he  does  not  seem  to  be, 
Richef   il  n'en  a  pas  Voir. 

En  in  this  sentence  stands  for  etre  riche. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  185 

2.    He  had  a  dreadful  time  of  it! 
//  en  a  passe f 
Take  my  word  for  it 
Croyez  m'en. 
I  have  enough  (of  this) 
J'en  ai  asses. 

In  these  very  idiomatic  phrases  en  is  neither  more 
nor  less  pleonastic  than  of  it,  for  it,  or  of  this 
in  English.  But  there  are  many  others  in  French 
which  have  no  equivalent  in  English,  ex. : 

Ou  en  etes-vousf  How  far  have  you  got? 

//  s'en  faut  hien,    Far  it  is  from  it. 

DEMONSTRATIVE  PRONOUNS 

1.  It  seems  to  me 
Ce  me  semble. 

Ce  is  sometimes  used  instead  of  il  neuter. 

2.  Seeing  this,    whereupon. 
Ce  voyant^   sur  ce. 

Ce  is  also .  used  for  cela. 

3.  It  is  not  a  great  feat, 

Ce  fCest  pas  la  un  grand  exploit. 
The  word  cela  is  decomposed  into  its  two  consti- 
tuent parts   ce Id   to   emphasize   the    words   un 

grand  exploit.    This  is  done  in  sentences  showing 
•    admiration  or,  on  the  contrary,  contempt. 

4.  He  is   great  who  conquers  himself 
Celui-ld  est  grand  qui  se  vainc. 

In  tlie  same  way  celui  qui  can  be  split  in  two, 
but  celui   becomes  celui-la. 


186  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

5.  What  caused  his  loss  was  his  avarice, 
Ce  qui  le  perdit  ce  fut  son  avarice. 

Ce  in  CE  FUT  is  pleonastic ;  frequent  in  sentences 
beginning  with  ce  qui,    ce  que. 

6.  That  class  has  no  respect  for  anybody 
Cela  ne   respecte  personne. 

Cela  is  often  used  colloquially  in  speaking  of 
people  one  scorns,  even  where  only  one  person 
is  meant. 

RELATIVE  PRONOUNS 

1.  He  who  breaks  pays 
Qui  casse  paie. 

Celui  qui  is  frequently  found  shortened  into 
QUI  in  proverbs  coined  at  a  time  when  this  was 
the  usual  way  of  speaking. 

2.  And  what  is  worse. ... 

Et  qui  pis  est. 

Ce  qui  is  also  abbreviated  into  qui,  a  terse  usage. 
Idiom :   Voila  qui  est  parler 
That  is  speaking 

3.  They  flocked  in,  some  from  the  North,  others  from 

the  South. 
Us  arriverent  en  foule,  qui  du  Nord,  qui  du  Midi. 
Qui....    qui  mstead   of  les  uns .  . .  .   les  autres 
imparts   charming  vivacity  to   the   sentence. 

4.  The  tutor  of  that  boy  who  used  to  bore  us. 

Le  precepteur  de  ce  gargon,  lequel  nous  ennuyait 
souvent, 

Lequel  instead  of  qui  leaves  no  doubt  that  the 
boring  person  was  the  boy,  whereas  qui  would 
be  ambiguous. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  187 

5.    The  difficulties  with  which  we  then  struggled 

Les  difjicultes  on  nous  nous  debattions  alors. . . . 
ou,  instead  of  avec  lequel  or  dans  lequel,  is 
a  terse  usage  frequent  in  the  best  writers. 

INDEFINITE  PRONOUNS 

On 

1.  What  you  conceive  clearly  can  also  be  expressed 

clearly. 
Ce  que  Von  concoit  bien  s'enonce  clairement. 

UoN  is  a  shade  more  dignified  than  on,  and  is 
also  used  to  avoid  a  harsh  hiatus,   (ex.:  on  on). 

2.  Coming ! 
On  y  va! 

On  is  colloquially  used  for  je  or  nous. 

3.  Once  more  you  don't  know  your  lesson,  be  careful ! 
On  ne  salt  pas  encore  sa  legon,  qu'on  fasse  attention  ' 

On  is  used  instead  of  vous  in  reproach  or  menace. 

4.  Nobody  could  be  wittier 
On  n'a  pas  plus  d' esprit. 

Idioms  of  this  kind  always  denote  superlative 
admiration  or  irritation ;  ex. :  on  n'est  pas  plus 
bete,  one  could  not  be  more  stupid. 


Tel: 


Many  a  man  shines  in  a  subordinate  position  who 
seems  dull   in   a  higher  one 

Tel  brille  au  second  rang  qui  s'eclipse  au  premier. 
Tel  in  proverbial  sentences  is  often  used  where 
English  would  use  he  who,  many  a   man,  etc. 


188  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

Chacun  : 

Every  body  knows 
Chacun  salt. 

Chacun  translates  both,  every  one,  and  each 
ONE.  It  is  always  used  as  a  pronoun,  the  cor- 
responding adjective  being  chaque. 

AuTRUi : 

We  must  think  of  our  neighbor, 

//  faiit  penser  a  autrui. 

AuTRUi  (lat.  alterum)  is  never  used  as  a  sub- 
ject and  is   only   found  in  general   sentences. 


VERB 

Inversion    of   Subject: 

The  French  language  inverts  the  subject  as  we 
do  in  English  in  two  cases : 

1.  In  indirect  questions,  ex.:  ask  yourself  what 
MIGHT  BE  YOUR  SITUATION,  IF. . ._,  demandes-vous  ce 
que  pourretit  etre  voire  situation  si. . 

2.  In  sentences  beginning  by  a  peine,  hardly;  non 
seulement,  not  only;  en  vain,  in  vain;  a  plus 
forte  raison,  even  with  better  cause;  and  de  la, 
HENCE_,  when  these  words  be^in  a  sentence,  ex. : 
hardly  were  we  out  at  sea^  a  peine  fumes-nous 
hors  du  port. 

The  French  language  also  inverts  the  subject  in 
the  following  cases  where  we  do  not  invert  it  in 
English : 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  189 

1.  After  peut-etre,  perhaps;  aussi,  therefore;  and 
in  the  idiom  toujours  est-il,  at  any  rate,  ex. :  you 
MAY  perhaps  say,  pcut-etre  direz-vous;  therefore 
I  feel  sure,  aussi  suis-je  sur. 

2.  In  dependent  clauses,  ex. :  the  long  exercises 
which  my  father  set  me,  les  longs  devoirs  que 
me  donnait  mon  pere. 

3.  In  concessive  or  conditional  clauses,  ex. :  however 
intelligent  a  school  boy  may  be,  quelque  intelli- 
gent que  soit  un  Sieve. 

4.  After  c'est  .  . .  que  when  the  following  verb  is  an 
intransitive,    ex. : 

It  is  from  the  North  now-a-days  that  light 
comes  to  us. 

C^est  du  Nord  aujourd'hui  que  nous  vient  la  lu- 
miere. 

Agreement  of  subjects  zvith  verbs: 

The  verb  is  in  the  plural  although  the  subject  is 
in  the  singular  in  the  following  cases: 

1.  After  two  subjects  in  the  singular  preceded  by  ni, 
ex. :  neither  New  York  nor  Chicago  can  get 
rid  of  its  smoke,  ni  New  York  ni  Chicago  ne 
peuvent  se  debarrasser  de  leur  fumee. 

2.  After  I'un  ct  I'autre,  ex. :  both  delight  me,  I'un 
et  I' autre  me  charment. 

Note. 

Ni  I'un  ni  V autre  governs  the  singular. 

3.  After  la  plupart,  most  ;  plus  d'un,  more  than  one  ; 
un  petit  nombre,  a  few;  un  grand  nombre,  a  great 


190  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

MANY,     ex.  :•  MOST    OF    THEM    SURRENDERED,    la   plu- 

part  se  rcndirent. 

4.  After  collective  nouns  in  the  singular  when  the 
action  of  the  individuals  is  seen  separately,  ex. : 
une  troupe  de  nymphes  nageaient,  a  band  of 
NYMPHS  WERE  SWIMMING;  wheu  the  action  is  seen 
collectively  the  verb  is  in  the  singular,  ex. :  une 
troupe  de  soldafs  arrwa,  a  band  of  soldiers  ar- 
rived. 

The  verb  is  in  the  singular  although  the  subject 
is  in  the  plural  in  the  following  cases: 

1.  After  ce  qui,  ex. :  what  are  known  as  the  me- 
dieval EPICS,  ce  qui  est  connu  sous  le  nom  d'cpo- 
pees  du  Moyen-Age. 

2.  After  le  peu  de,  ex. :  what  few  people  he  sees 
BORE  htm,    le  peu  de  gens  quHl  voit  Vennuient, 

USE  OF  TENSES 

Indicative:   If   he  comes    and    if   he   should   tell   you, 
S'il  vient  et  qu'il  vous  dise. 

The  two  verbs  would  be  in  the  indicative  if  sr 
were  the  only  preposition  used  (s'il  vient  et  s'il  vous 
dit)  ;  but  the  introduction  of  que  meaning  suppose 
que  makes  the  use  of  the  subjunctive  a  necessity 
with  the  second  verb. 

Conditional:    You  might  look  twenty  times,  you  would 
see  nothing. 

Vous  regarderiez  vingt  fois,  vous  ne  ver- 
rie.z  rien. 


FRENCH    GRAMMAR   MADE   CLEAR  191 

Probabilities  are  marked  very  logically  by  the  con- 
ditional. 

Present  Participle:  This  tense  seems  very  ponderous 
to  the  French  and  they  avoid  it  as  much  as  they 
can.  The  same  tense  in  English  is,  on  the  con- 
trary,  very   convenient   and    frequently    used. 

1.  The  participles  being  or  feeling  so  often  placed  at 
the  beginning  of  an  English  sentence  disappear  i  i 
French,  ex. :  Feeling  sure  that  you  v^ould  suc- 
ceed I  CAME^  Sur  que  vous  reussiries  farrivai. 

2.  Many  English  present  participles  are  translated  by 
past  participles  in  French  (lying,  sitting,  standing, 
kneeling,  etc.),  ex.:  Lying  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Loire,  Saint  Nazaire  ought  to  be  a  large  port, 
Situe  a  Vemhouchure  de  la  Loire,  Saint-Nazaire 
devrait  etre  un  grand  port. 

Infinitive:  1.  One  of  the  characteristics  of  the  French 
language  is  the  constant  use  of  the  infinitive.  In 
the  follow^ing  sentence :  fcspere  pouvoir  venir  ap- 
porter  mon  concours  a  votre  oeitvre,  I  hope  i  can 

COME    and    give     my     ASSISTANCE    TO    YOUR    W^ORK, 

there  are  three  infinitives  in  succession,  almost  an 
impossibility  in  English, 

2.  On  the  other  hand  the  English  construction  imi- 
tated from  the  Latin :  ''he  w^ anted  me  to  be  a 
SAILOR"*'  is  no  longer  in  use  in  modern  French, 
and  the  translation  runs :  il  voulait  que  je  sois 
marin. 

3.  In  the  numerous  instances  in  which  a  present  par- 
ticiple follows  TO  see  and  to  hear  in  English  the 


192  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

French  substitutes  an  infinitive  for  the  participle, 
ex. :  I  HEARD  HIM  WHISTLING,  je  Vefitendis  siffler. 

Note. 

When  a  graphic  effect  is  intended  the  present  participle 
is  retained,  ex. :  I  could  see  him  hopping  round, 
je  le  voyais  Id  sautillant. 

4.  French  infinitives  frequently  replace  English  nouns, 

ex.  :  THE  TALENT  FOR  ORGANIZATION,     Ic  talent  d'OT- 

ganiser;    his    capacity    for    condensation,    son 
aptitude  a  condemer. 


PREPOSITIONS  BEFORE  AN  INFINITIVE 

Examine   carefully   the    following   sentences: 

1.  Come  and  tell  me,  Venez  raconter  (no  prep.) 

2.  He  hopes  to  come,  //  espere  venir  (no  prep.) 

3.  He  asks  to  come,  //  demande  a  venir  (d) 

4.  I    shall   do   my  best  to  Je  ferai  mon  possible  pour 

come,  venir  (pour) 

5.  He  will  try  to  come,  '//  essaiera  de  venir  (de) 

You  will  find  that  the  infinitive  in  the  French  sen- 
tences 1  and  2  is  not  preceded  by  any  preposition, 
whereas  in  the  French  sentences  3,  4,  and  5,  the 
infinitive  is  preceded  by  a^  pour,  de. 
Now  in  the  corresponding  English  sentences  the 
second  verb  is  almost  always  preceded  by  to,  and 
the  question  is  for  an  English-speaking  person  how 
to  know,  1  :  when  the  French  preposition  ought  to 
be  left  out,  and  2:  in  what  case  to  ought  to  be 
translated  by  a,  de,  pour. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  193 

a)  The  preposition  is  left  out  in  two  cases: 

1.  after  verbs  of  motion  like  aller,  to  go;  venir, 
TO  COME ;  courir,  to  run  ;  retourner,  to  go  back  ; 
also  after  conduire,  to  lead^   and  envoyer,  to 

SEND, 

ex.  :    COME    AND    TELL    YOUR    FATHER    WHAT    YOU 
HAVE    DONE, 

Venez  raconter  a  voire  pere  ce  que  vous 
avez  fait. 

Note. 

Remember  that  il  a  ete,  il  s'en  fut,  frequently  meaning 
HE  HAS  GONE,  HE  WENT  and  really  belonging  to  alter, 
are  not  followed  by  any  preposition. 

Idiom :    Je  viens  de  voir,  I  have  just  seen. 

2.  After  verbs  of  thinking,  hoping  and  stating,  ex.  : 

Je  croyais  partir  aujourd'hui, 

I   THOUGHT    I    SHOULD   LEAVE   TO-DAY. 

b)  Cases  in  which  the  verb  is  preceded  by  a,  pour,  de. 
By  A: 

To  is  translated  by  a  in  the  following  cases : 

1.  When  the  verb  begins  a  sentence  indicating  an 
inference. 

To  hear  you  one  would  imagine 
A  vous  entendre  on  s'imaginerait. 

2.  When  the  sentence  can  be  interrupted  imme- 
diately before  the  verb  by  the  question :  to  do 
WHAT.?    Ex. : 

Americans;  have   grown   accustomed    (to   do 

what?)    to   help    every   body 
Les    Americains    se    sont    habitues    (a    quoi 
faire?)  a  aider  tout  le.  monde. 


194  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

I  am   ready   (to  do  what?)    to    follow  their 

example. 
Je  suis  pret   (a   quoi  faire?)    a  suivre  leiir 

ex  em  pie. 

3.  After  avoir,  ex. : 

J'ai  a  vous  dire  que 

I  have  to  tell  you  that. . . 

4.  After  nouns  which  in  English  are  followed  by 
IN,    ex. : 

I  take  pleasure  in  informing  you 
J'ai  plaisir  a  vous  ap prendre. 

By  Pour: 

The  infinitive  is  preceded  by  pour: 

1.  When  the  corresponding  English  sentence  would 
contain  for,    ex. : 

He  was  punished  for  being  too  wise 
//  a  ete  puni  pour  avoir  tie  trop  sage. 
He  passes  for  a  learned  man 
//  passe  pour  sava<nt. 

2.  When  to  in  the  English  sentence  means  in  or- 
der TO,  and  generally  when  a  definite  purpose 
is  indicated,    ex. : 

Open  the  window  to  cool  the  room 
Ouvrez  la  fenetre  pour  rafraichir  la  chambre. 

3.  After  trop  and  assez,    ex. : 

Too  proud  to  fight 
Trop  Her  pour  se  battre. 

ByDe: 

The   French   infinitive   is,   nine  times   out   of   ten, 
preceded  by  de  which  in  most  cases  is  a  mere  link 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE   CLEAR  195 

and  has  no  more  meaning  than  to  has  in  EngHsh. 
However,  it  is  advisable  to  state  that  de  will  be 
found   chiefly   in   the    following   cases : 

1.  Wherever  of  would  be  used  in  English  after  a 
noun  or  an  adjective,    ex. : 

The  duty  of  educating  the  nation, 
Le  devoir  d'instruire  la  nation. 
I  am  doubtful  of  succeeding. . . 
Je  ne  suis  pas  siir  de  reussir. 

Note. 

There  -are  but  few  adjectives  governing  of,  but  there 
are  a  great  many  nouns  in  English  which  do  so  and 
there  are  even  more  in  French.  Hence,  the  number 
of  compound  prepositions  derived  from  a  noun  and 
ending  by  de,.  ex. :  afin  de,  in  order  to,  a  mains  de, 
UNLESS,    faute  de,  in  default  of,    au  point  de,  to 

THE   EXTENT    OF,    CtC. 

2.  When  the  first  verb  can  be  decomposed  into  a 
verb   and  a  noun,    ex. : 

He  advised  me  to  live  on  a  ranch, 
(decompose:    He  gave  me  the  advice) 

//  me  conseilla  de  vivre  dans  une  ferme. 

3.  After  impersonal  verbs  beginning  by  il,  neuter, 
ex.: 

//  importe  de  comprendre 

It   is    important   to   understand. 

//  est  dur  d'etre  exile 

It  is  hard  to  live  in  exile. 

C'est  heaucoup  de  savoir  un  metier 

It  is  a  fine  thing  to  know  a  trade. 

4.  De  is  frequently  used  instead  of  par  :    ex. : 
precede  de  musiciens,  preceded  by   musicians; 
amuse  de  ses  re  parties,  amused  by  his  repartees. 


196  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 


Note. 


In  numerous  cases  no  definite  rule  can  be  given  for 
the  use  of  de;  but  an  instinct  is  soon  developed  in 
the  student  who  feels  that  when  A  or  pour  would 
be  out  of  place  de  is  the  right  preposition.  Ex.: 
You  WERE  KIND  TO  WRITE  ME,  Vous  ttvcs  etc  Gtmable 
de  m'ecrire;  I  was  wrong  to  stay,  J' at  eu  tort  de 
rester. 


REMARKS  ON  A  FEW  VERBS 


Faire. 


• 

Conjugation. 

Ind.  pres. 

Je  fais 

Imp. 

Je  faisais 

Simple  past 

Je  fis 

Compound  past 

J'ai  fait 

Future 

Je  feral 

Condit. 

Je  ferais 

Imper. 

Fais 

Subj. 
Imp. 

Que  je  fasse 
Que  je  fisse 

1.  Faire  is  the  most  frequent  French  verb:  it  trans- 
lates not  only  to  make,  (to  make  a  speech,  faire 
un  discours)  and  to  do  (to  do  nothing,  ne  rien 
faire)  but  also  the  following  verbs : 
to  order,  ex. :  he  ordered  him  to  run,  it  Ic  fit  courir, 
to  bid,  ex. :  he  bade  me  repeat,  il  me  fit  repeter, 
TO  let,  ex. :  I  shall  let  you  know,  je  vous  feral 

savoir, 
to  cause,  ex. :  he  caused  him  to  be  removed,  il  lo 

fit  eloigner, 
TO  GET,  ex. :  he  got  him  appointed,  il  le  fit  nommer, 
TO  HAVE,  ex. :  he  had  him  sentenced,  il  le  fit  coiw 

damner, 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  197 

TO  COMPEL,  ex. :  I  will  compel  you  to  speak,  jc  voiis 

ferai  parler, 
and  other  verbs  like  to  send  for,  faire  vcnir;  to 
BUILD,  faire  bdtir;  to  have  an  illness,  faire  unc 
maladie;  to  pretend,  faire  semhlant;  etc. 
Faire  is  also  found  in  numerous  phrases  which  in 
English  begin  by  it  is,  ex. :  it  is  dark,  il  fait  noir; 
it  is  cold,  il  fait  froid;  etc.  (see  page  153). 

2.  (1)   I  shall  have  him  taught 

Je  le  ferai  instruire. 

(2)   I  will  make  him  understand  what  I  want, 
Je  lui  ferai  comprendre  ce  que  je  veux. 

Observe  that  him  is  translated  by  le  in  sentence  (1) 
and  by  lui  in  sentence  (2),  because  him  is  a  direct 
object  in  the  first  case  and  an  indirect  one  in  the 
second. 

The  direct  object  of  faire  comprendre  is  ce  que  je 
vcux,  and  the  parsing  becomes  very  easy  if  we 
replace  lui  by  the  word  it  represents,  for  instance: 
je  ferai  comprendre  a  mon  fils  ce  que  jg  veux. 

3.  Work  alone  causes  talent  to  ripen, 
Le  travail  seiil  fait  miirir  le  talent. 

Not  fait  le  talent  murir:  the  second  verb  always 
follows  faire  immediately. 

4.  He  made  the  shepherd  his  prime  minister, 
//  at  du  herger  son  premier  ministre. 

This  usage  can  easily  be  understood  if  we  re- 
member that  we  say  in  English  almost  indif- 
ferently:   I  shall  make  him  a  real  man  or  I 

SHALL    MAKE   A   REAL   MAN   OF   HIM. 


198  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

5.    I  am  going  to  have  another  coat  made  for  me, 
Je  vais  me  faire  faire  un  autre  pardessus. 

The  combination  faire  faire  which  sounds  so 
strange  to  EngHsh  ears  is  constant  when  made 
follows  an  object  governed  by  one  of  the  verbs 

TO   HAVE_,   TO  GET,   TO   CAUSE. 

It  goes  without  saying  that  if  another  participle 
takes  the  place  of  made,  the  second  faire  is  re- 
placed by  the  infinitive  of  that  participle,  ex:  I 
AM  GOING  TO  HAVE  MY  HAIR  CUT,  je  vais  me  fairc 
couper  les  cheveuX' 

Idioms.   1.  //  ne  fait  que  f timer, 

He   does   nothing   except   smoke. 

2.  Je  ne  fats  que  d'arrivcr, 

I   have  only   just  arrived. 

3.  Vous  avez  beau  faire, 
Do  what  you  will. 

4.  A^^  faites  pas  le  modestc> 
Do  not  act  the  modest  man. 

5.  Fais  le  beau,  toutou, 
Beg,    Doggie. 

Aller. 

1.  I  will  soon  call  on  you, 

Je  vais  bicntot  aller  vous  voir- 

Aller  is  frequently  used  to  denote  the  future. 

2.  I  have  been  there  twice, 

J'y  at  ete  or  fy  suis  alle  deux  fois. 

Aller  has  two  compound  pasts :  j'ai  eie  and  /-.• 
suis  alle  (note  the  different  auxiliary). 


FRENCH    GRAATMAR    MADE   CLEAR  199 

3,  You  go  round  saying.  . . 
Vous  allcz  partout  disant .  . .  . 

A  charmingly  vivacious  construction  in   French, 
both  colloquial  and  literary. 

4.  The  wood  became  thicker  and  thicker, 
Le  hois  allait  en  s'epaississant. 

Progress  is  often  marked  by  allf.r,  followed  by 
the  present  participle. 

VOULOIR. 

1.  VouLOiR  is  frequent  in  French  as  it  translates  not 
only  wiLL^  but  also  wish,  want,  intend,  mean, 
TRY,    ex. : 

I  WILL  NOT  go  there, 

Je  ne  veux  pas  y  allcr. 

What  do  you  wish  ? 

Que  "jou lez-vo us? 

He  intends  to  live  abroad, 

//  vent  vivre  a  Vetrangcr. 

He  tried  to  make  his  escape, 

//  vouhit  s'echapper. 


Note. 

The  phrase  je  veux  sounds  unpleasantly  dictatorial  in 
French  and  is  avoided  by  well-bred  people.  So  we 
must  be  careful  not  to  acquire  the  habit  of  using  it 
as  a  mere  translation  of  the  future,   or  even  of   1 

WANT    or    I    WISH.     I    WANT   YOU   TO    BE    HERE    AT    TWO, 

-  will  be  best  translated  by  Je  desire  que  vous  soyez 
ici  a  deux  heures,  even  speaking  to  an  inferior,  or 
simply  by  the  imperative:  Soyez  ici  a  deux  heures, 
which  is  perfectly  polite. 

2.    Please  remember  me  to  your  father, 

Vcuillez  mc  mppeler  au  souvenir  dc  votre  pere. 


200  FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR 

Please  is  translated  either  by  veuillez  (placed 
at  the  beginning  of  the  sentence)  or  by  /♦/  voiis 
plait  (placed  after  the  principal  verb.) 

3.  I  should  like  you  to  understand, 
Je  voiidrais  que  vous  comprenies. 

I  SHOULD  LIKE  is  translated  by  je  voudrais. 

Je  voiidrais  is  also  the  proper  translation  for  T 

WISH  in  such  phrases  as  I  wish  you  would  or 

I    WISH    YOU   WERE. 

4.  Will  you  have  a  cup  of  camomile  tea? 
Voiiles-vous  une  tasse  de  camomillef 

VouLOiR  is  frequently  used  as  a  transitive  verb 
[it  veut  de  V argent,   il  veut  du  plaisir]. 
Proverb — Vouloir  c'est  pouvoir. 

Where  there's  a  will  there's  a  way. 


ADVERB 


A   PEINE   SI 


He  is  no  scholar,  he  is  hardly  educated, 
//  n'est  pas  savant,  a  peine  s'il  a  quelque  instruction. 
A  peine  si  or  c'est  a  peine  si  has  the  meaning  of 

HARDLY. 

A  synonym  is  tout  au  plus,  at  most,  after  which 
the  subject  is  inverted  {tout  au  plus  a-t-il  quelque 
instruction). 

COMBIEN  : 

CoMBiEN  translates  several  English  words: 
1.    How  much?   Ex.:  How  much  is  it? 
Combien  est-ce? 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  201 

2.  How  many?    Ex.:  How  many  have  you? 

Combien  en  avez-vous? 

3.  How  WELL !    Ex. :    How  well  I  realised ! 

Combien  j'ai  compris! 

D'ou? 

1.  Where  do  you  come  from? 
D'oii  venez-vousf 

Where.  .. -FROM  is  translated  literally  by  d'ou? 

2.  From  which  or  whence   I  infer  that 

D'oii  je  conclus  que.  .  •  • 

Used  metaphorically,  d'ou  corresponds  to  whence. 

Encore  : 

1.  Encore  means  still,  yet»  again,  ex. :  he  is  stilt, 
there,  il  est  encore  la;  he  has  come  again,  il  est 
encore  revenu. 

2.  It  also  means  more,  ex. :  more  coffee?...,  encor-: 
du  cafe? , . . . 

Pas: 

Pas  is  left  out  in  the  following  cases : 

1.  After  oser,  to  dare;  cesser,  to  stop;  bouger,  to 
stir;   savoir^  to  know. 

Ex. :  I  did  not  dare  to  stir, 
Je  n'osais  bouger. 

2.  After  qui  ne. 

Ex. :  //  n'y  awiit  personne  que  ne  le  crut, 
Nobody  who  did  not  believe  him. 


202  FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

3.    After   que  ne,  in  exclamations. 
Ex.:  Que  fie  m'appelait-il! 

Why  did  he  not  call  me ! 

Note. 

After  pas  davantage,  neither,  the  subject  is  inverted. 
Ex. :      pas     davantage     ne     songea-t-il    a    m'appeler, 

NEITHER    DID    HE    THINK    OF    CALLING    ME. 


Peu: 


Peu,  an  adverb,  means  hardly  : 

Peu  prepare  a  etre  officier, 
Hardly  qualified  to  be  an  officer. 


Par  ou? 


Par  ou?  means  which  way? 
Ex.:  Which  way  did  he  go  out? 
Par  oil  cst-il  sorti? 


Pres: 

Pres  means  near_, 

a  heaucoup  pres     ^ 

,     '    ,  L  mean  far  from  it, 

or       tant    s  en     faiit      j 

pas  a  heacoup  pres  means  not  nearly. 

PREPOSITIONS 

A        This   preposition   (Lat.   ad,   Eng.  at)    is  generally 
prefixed  to  names  of  places,  but  is  also  found  before 
names  of   time. 
A  and  at  exactly  correspond  in  the  following  cases : 

1.    before  names  of  towns,  ex.:  at  Exeter,  a  Exeter; 
at  Marseilles,    a  Marseille: 


FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  203 


2.  before  names  of  places,  not  towns,  where  one  stay^ 
or  goes  habitually,  ex. : 

at   school,    a   Vecole,    au   college, 
at  church,    a   Veglise, 
at  the  office,    au  bureau. 

Note. 

A  is  also  used  before  nouns  generally  preceded  by  in 
in  English  when  a  habit  is  suggested :  for  instance, 
we  say  of  a  forester:  il  travaille  au  hois,  he  works 
IN  THE  wooD^  because  he  works  there  habitually ;  but 
of  a  writer:  il  travaille  dans  le  hois,  he  is  working 
IN  THE  WOOD,  because  the  writer  only  works  acci- 
dentally in  the  wood. 

3.  In   many  phrases   stating   an   occasion   or   a   state, 

ex. :  at  the  thought  of,  a  la  pensee  dc, 

at  work,    an  travail, 

at  attention,  au  garde  a  voiis. 

4.  before  names  of  church  or  other  festivals,  before 
hours,  and  before  automne,  autumn,  and  prin- 
temps,  SPRING  {ete,  summer,  and  hiver,  winter,  are 
preceded  by  en).  Ex.: 

at  Easter,    a  Paqiies, 

at  night,    au  soir, 

at  ten  o'clock,    a  dix  heures, 

in  the  fall,  a  Vautomne. 

Note. 

Names  of  European  countries  are  all  feminine,  with 
two  exceptions,  Danemark  (Denmark)  and  Portugal. 
All  of  them,  including  these  two  masculine  nouns, 
are  preceded  by  en,  ex. :  in  Russia,  en  Russie ;  in 
Portugal,  en  Portugal. 

Names  of  countries  outside  Europe  are  preceded  by 
en  Avhen  they  are  feminine,  ex. :  in  California,  en 
Calif ornie;  they  are  preceded  by  au  when  they  are 
masculine,  ex. :  in  Canada,  au  Canada.  However, 
we  should  say,  dans  le  Connecticut,  dans  le  Massa- 
chusetts. 


204  FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


Dans,  En  : 

1.  The  distinction  made  above  between  a  and  dans 
obtains  between  dans  and  en:  dans  suggests  a 
transient,    en  a  permanent  action,    ex. : 

to  drive,    alley  en  voiture, 

to  go  by  rail,   aller  en  chemin  de  fer, 

in  Heaven,    en  Paradis, 
but     I  saw  him  in  a  carriage, 

Je  Vai  vu  dans  une  voiture, 

I  met  him  in  the  train, 

Je  Vai  rencontre  dans  le  train, 
because  the  meaning  of  these  sentences-  shows  that 
the  action  was  accidental. 

2.  For  the  same  reasons  dans  is  used  every  time  the 
place  or  the  people  in  a  place  are  well  defined,  ex. : 

Dans  cette  assemblee, 

In  this  assembly. 

Dans  le  Parlement  de  1898, 

In  the  Parliament  of  1898. 

3.  Within  or  in  meaning  within  are  translated 
by  dans,  ex.: 

I  shall  leave  in  three  days, 
Je  partirai  dans  trots  jours. 
In  meaning  in  the  space  of  is  translated  by  en,  ex  :. 
He  wrote  his  play  in  three  days, 
//  ecrivit  sa  pibce  en  trois  jours. 

4.  Dans  is  frequently  used  where  the  English  language 
uses  OUT  OF,  ex. : 

That  robin  used  to  eat  out  of  my  hand, 
Ce  rouge-gorge  mangeait  dans  ma  main. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  205 


5.  En   is   used    in   speaking   of    clothing,  -ex. : 

in  uniform, 
en  uniforme. 
in  full  dress, 
en  grande  toilette. 

6.  En  frequently  means  as  or  like^  ex. : 

il  s'est  comporte  en  gentilhomme, 
he  behaved   like  a   gentleman. 


De 


1.  De  generally  means  of  or  from,  ex.: 

The  mayor  of  New  York, 
Le  ntaire  de  New  York. 
He  comes  from  New  York, 
//  vient  de  Nezv  York. 

2.  It  is  used  elliptically,  ex. : 

Ce  n'est  pas  d'une  dame  de..,. 

It  is  not  (in  the  character)  of  a  lady  to. . . . 

3.  It  also  denotes  material  as  in  English  but  is  fre- 
quently replaced  in  this  connection  by  en,    ex. : 

a  house  of  wood, 
une  maison  de  hois. 
it  is  made  of  wood, 
(fest  en  hois. 

Note. 

When  the  word  designating  the  material  is  used  as  an 
adjective,  ex. :  a  wooden  statue,  an  iron  pipe,  de 
is  the  more  frequent  translation :  une  statue  de  hois, 
un  tuyctu  de  fer. 

4.  De  is  pleonastic  when  numbers  are  mentioned,  ex. : 

dix  hoinmes  de  trop, 
ten  men  too  many. 


206  FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


5.    De  indicating  a  passive  state  means  sometimes  of, 
sometimes  from  or  by  :  ex. : 
tired  of  long  marches, 

fatigue  (i.e.  having  enough)  de  longucs  marches. 
tired  from  long  marches, 
fatigue  (worn  out)  de  tongues  marches. 

6.  De  is  used  in  many  cases  where  English  employs 
BY :   ex. : 

Esteemed  by  everybody, 
Estime  de  tous. 
Taller  by  a  foot, 
Plus  grand  d'un  pied. 

7.  De  sometimes  applies  to  time,  ex. : 

De  nuit, 

By  night  (cf.  o'nights). 

De  moil  invant, 

In  my  life  time. 

De  huit  jours, 

For  a  week. 

8.  De  is  frequent  where  English  uses  with,    ex. : 

With  a  tranquil  air, 
D*un  air  tranquille. 

Jusqu'a  : 

Jusqu'a   or  jusque  corresponds   to   both   till   and 
AS  FAR  AS,    ex. : 

Till  Easter, 

Jusqu'a  Paques. 

As   far  as   Irvington, 

Jusqu'a  Irvington. 


Par 


Ne: 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  207 


The  usual  meaning  of  par  is  by^    ex. : 

Painted   by   me, 

Peint  par  moi; 
but  par  also  means  through,    ex. : 

Nous  rcviendrons  par   Orleans, 

We  shall  come  back  through  Orleans; 
and  sometimes  in,    ex. : 
In  such  weather, 

Par  un  temps  pareil. 


CONJUNCTIONS 


Ne  is  frequently  met  with  in  French  sentences  in 
which  it  has  no  negative  sense  and  is  apt  to  mis- 
lead the  English-speaking  reader  entirely.  For  in- 
stance, a  moins  qu'il  ne  vienne  seems  at  first  sight 
to  mean  a  moins  qu'il  ne  vienne  pas,  unless  he 
DOES  NOT  COME,  but  in  reality  it  means  exactly 
the  reverse :  unless  he  comes.  A^^  is  there  only 
because  a  moins  que  demands  its  presence. 

Ne  is  thus  used  without  a  negative  sense  in  the 
following  cases : 

1.  After  A  MOINS  que  and  de  peur  que_,    ex.: 

Restez  de  peur  qu'il  ne  vienne, 
Stay  lest  he  should  come. 

2.  After  avant  que,    ex : 

Avant  que  Ic  Congres  ne  se  reunisse. 
Before    Congress    meets. 


208 FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

3.  After  que meaning  since,    ex.: 

It  is  three  days  since  I  saw  you, 
Voila  trois  jours  que  je  ne  vous  ai  mi. 

4.  After  the  comparative,  ex. : 

He  is  taller  than  I  thought, 

//  est  plus  grand  que  je  ne  croyais. 

5.  After  verbs  indicating  fear,  doubt,  despair,  denial, 
or  hindering,  ex. : 

I  am  afraid  you  imagine. . . . 

Je  crains  que  vous  n'imaginiez. ... 

6.  After  the  second  ni  in  a  sentence  including  ni. ., 
nit   ex. : 

He  neither  spoke  nor  smiled, 
//  ne  parla  ni  ne  sourit. 

Que: 

Let  it  be  remembered  that  que  sometimes  means 

HOW    MUCH,    HOW    MANY,     CX.  : 

How  much  noise!    how  many  people! 

Que  de  bruit!    que  de  gens! 
also  that  in  French  proverbs  handed  down  in  old 
language  it  means  ce  que,    ex.: 

AdiAenne  que  pourra, 

Come  what  may. 

The  chief    meanings   of   que,   a   conjunction,   arc 
the  following: 

1.    Que  at  the  beginning  of  an  exclamative  sentence 
means  how  !    ex. : 
How  beautiful  it  is! 
Que  c'est  beau! 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  209 

2.  Que  at  the  beginning  of  an  interrogative  sentence 
means  why.  .  •  •  not,    ex. : 

Why  did  you  not  call  me? 
Que  ne  wi'appelies-vous? 

3.  Que  is  pleonastic  in  sentences   like : 

Re  pond  ez  que  non;    dites  que  oui, 

Answer  no;    say  yes; 
and  is  used  in  numberless  cases  in  which  we  leave 
that  out  because  the  meaning  of  the  sentence  is  clear 
without  it :    ex. : 

I  thought  (that)  you  would  come, 

Je  croyais  que  vous  viendriez. 

4.  Que  appears  in  sentences  beginning  by  si,  though 
THAT  is  not  used  in  English  after  if»    ex. : 

Si  le  ciel  s'assomhrit  (ind.)  et  qu'il  pleuve  (subj.), 
If  the  sky  should  darken  and  it  rained. 


Note. 


Que  si  (lat.  quod  si)   begins  a  supposition.    Ex. :    que 
si  I'on  vous  dit,  suppose  somebody  should  tell  you. 


5.  Que  is  also  pleonastic  in  exclamative  sentences,  ex. 

Quel  homme  que  Washington! 
What  a  man  Washington  was! 
Voila  ce  que  c'est  que  de  faineanterf 
That's  what  comes  of  loafing! 
Malheur eux  que  tu  es! 
You  unfortunate  man! 

6.  C*est  que  means  it  is  because,  or  the  fact  is,  ex. 

C^est  que  cet  homme  m'ennuie, 
It  is  because  that  man  bores  me. 


210  FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

7.  Que  after  an  imperative  frequently  means  afiii  que, 
THAT,    ex. : 

Venez  que  je  vous  dise, 

Come  here  that  I  may  tell  you. 

8.  Que. . .  .ou  means  whether.  . .  .or,    ex. : 

Whether  you  approve  or  disapprove, 
Que  vous  approuviez  ou  que  vous  bldmiez. 

QUELQUE  : 

1.  Quelque  generally  means  however,    ex.: 

However  wise  you  may  think  yourself, 
Quelque  sage  que  vous  vous  croyiez  (subj.). 

Note. 

a)  Si  sage  or  pour  sage  followed  by  the  subjunctive 
or  tout  sage  followed  by  the  indicative  would  also 
be  accurate  translations. 

b)  Quelques,  an  indefinite  adjective,  means  whatever, 

ex.:       WHATEVER    CLAIMS    YOU    MAY    HAVE, 

Quelques  droits  que  vous  ayez. 

2.  Quelque,  before  a  number  also  means  about:  ex.: 

Quelque  vingt  ans, 
Some  twenty  years, 
in  which  case  it  is  invariable. 


Note. 


It  is  of  the  highest  importance  to  observe  that  the 
French  language  has  a  tendency  to  suppress  con- 
junctions whenever  the  meaning  of  the  sentence  is 
clear  without  them.  It  is  this  habit  that  imparts  to 
French  a  great  deal  of  its  lightness  and  vivacity  as 
compared  with  its  parent,  Latin,  or  with  English. 
Ex. :  Though  he  was  tired  he  went  on.  Fatigue, 
il  continua  pourtant.    Even  though  people  insulted 

AND     SHOVED     HIM,    HE IflSUltS,     hoUSCuU,    tl 

EITHER    YOU    OR    I    WILL    HAVE    TO VoUS    OU    mOt, 

nous  devrons. ... 


FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


211 


FREQUENT  MISTAKES  TO  BE  CAREFULLY 
AVOIDED 


DO  NOT  say: 

Angleterre   est  iin  pays 

riche 
Nous  hiivons  de  lait 
lis  softt  grandes  forets  la 
Deux  beaux  chevals 
un  vieiix  maison 
tin  sage  enfant 
un  ho  mine  americain 
Je  suis  venu  plus  que  dix 

fois 
Elle  est  beaucoup  admiree 
J'ai  travaille  un  petit 
II  va  vendre  son  maison 
Descender    plusieurs    mar- 
ches 
J'ai  un  cent  francs  ici 
President  Madison 
Georges  cinquieme 
Si  voiis  pouvez  venir,  fmtes 

cela 
Moil  faire  telle  chose! 
Je  pensais  de  cela 
J'irai  la,  j'allais  \a 
Paries  encore  a  eux 
Je  lui  ai  vu  hier 
J'ai  ecrit  a  elle 
De  qui  est  cette  maison  t 
Elle  est  celle  du  maire 


say: 

U  Angleterre 

du  lait 

II  y  a.  de  grandes  forets 

deux  beaux  ch ev3iU^ 

une  vieille  maison 

un  enfant  sage 

un  americain 

plus  de  dix  fois 
tres  or  fort  admiree 
un  peu 
sa  maison 

quelques  marches 
J*ai  cent  francs 
Le  President  Madison 
Georges  Cinq 

Faites  le 

Faire  une  telle  chose! 

Je  pensais  a  cela 

J'irai,  fy  allais 

Paries  leur  encore 

Je  Vai  vu 

Je  lui  ai  ecrit 

A  qui  est.  . .  ,f 

.C'est  au  maire 


212 


FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


DO  NOT  say: 

Vun  que  fat  In  (book") 
Le  monsieur  a  quel  je  par- 

lais 
Quoi  disiez-vous? 
lis  crient  dans  la  cour 
Une  per  Sonne  est  Id,  il  m'a 

dit 
Je  n'ai  cru  rien  qu'il  disait 
J'ai  alle*  j'allerai 
II  envoira  a  vous 
Je  deteste  a  piinir 
Cest.moi  qui  a  ecrit 
J'ai  juste  entendu 
J'ai  entendu  de  lux 
II  pleuvait  tout  le  mois 
Avertissez-moi   quand  il 

arrive 
Je  veux  acheter  de  la  laine 
II  veut  monter  tout  de  suite 
Si  vous  voiidriez  venir  je 

resterais 
II  est  trop  tard  pour  moi 

apprendre  le  frangais 
II  est  trop  tard  pour  que 

j'apprends 
II  est  trop  tard  pour  que 

vous  apprenne 
Je  serai  content  que  vous 

venez 
Il  n*est  pas  possible  qu'il 

guerira 


say: 
celui  que  j'ai  lu 

Le  monsieur  aiiquel 
Que  disiez-vous? 
On  crie 

elle  m'a  dit 

Je  n'ai  rien  cru  de  ce  qu'il 

J'ai  He,  /'irai 

//  vous  enverra 

Je  deteste  punir 

Cest  moi  qui  ai 

Je  viens  d' apprendre 
J'ai  regu  une  lettre  de  lui 
II  a.  plu. . , . 

Quand  il  arrivera 
Je  vais  acheter 
II  va  monter 

Si  vous  vouliez 

Pour  que  /'apprenne 

Pour  que  /'apprenne 

Pour  que  vous  appreniez 

Que  vous  veniez 

Qu'il  guerisse 


FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


213 


DO  NOT  say: 

Demeurait    voire    mere    a 

New  York? 
Chanter  a  voire  soeur? 

Voire  soeur  veut-elle  chan- 

ier? 
Elle  a  descendu  a  la  cave 
Presses  vous  pas 
II  a  sot  hlesse 
Les  pouleis  sont  vendus 

Cher 
lis  dete stent  Vun  I' autre 
II  est  trop  froid  ici 
II  etait  beaucoup  de  monde 
II  est  huit  jours  qu'il  est 

parti 
II  sera  un  mots  demain 
Partes  tout  de  suite,  il  faut 
Pai  vu  bien 

II  n'est  pas  la? — Oui,  oui! 
II  a  casse  sa  jambe 
Je  viens  de  la  France 
Pai  vecu  en  Jap  on 
H  etait  un  a/uocat 
Rien  plus  heureux  pouvait 

arrifuer 
Vous  petit  me  chant! 
Voyant  un  tambour  il  s'as- 

sit  sur  lui 
Laissez  lui  faire 
Le  jour  viendra  quand  je 

saurai 


say: 

Voire  mere  demeurait  elle? 
Voire  soeur  chantera-t- 

elle? 
Voire  soeur  chantera-t- 

elle? 
Elle  est  descendue 
Ne  vous  presses  pas 
II  s'est  blesse 

Les  pouleis  se  vendent 
lis  se  detestent 
II  fait  trop  froid 
II  y  avait. . . . 

//  y  a  huit  jours 

II  y  aura .... 

//  le  faut 

Pai  bien  vu 

Si,  si! 

II  s'est  casse  la  jambe 

Je  viens  de  France 

au  Jap  on 

II  etait  avocat 

Rien  de  plus  heureux  ne. 
Petit  mechant! 

. .  Jl  s'assit  dessus 
Laissez  le  faire 

Le  jour  viendra  ou . . . . 


214 


FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


DO  NOT   say: 

rentendais  lui  cJuintant 
Tachcz  venir 
Tachez  pour  venir 
Je  suis  pret  pour  partir 
J'ai  plaisir  de  vous  ap pren- 
dre 
J'ai  eu  deux  livres  relies 
Je  fcrai  lui  regretter 
Je  veux  que  vous  etes  ici  a 

5  heures 
A^ous  etions  en  Paris 
Le  rossignol  chante  en  prin- 

temps 
Elle  n'agit  pas  coimne  dam*) 
un  feu  en  hois  hrulait 
Estime  par  tout  le  monde 
Elle  dit  avec  une  voix  calme 
Nous  sommes  venus  a  tra- 

vers  Albany 
en  telle  tempete 
Je  pense  oui 
Attendee  qu'il  vient 
II  faiidra  encore  retourner 


say: 

Je  Vcntendais  chanter 
Tdchez  de  venir 
Tdches  de  venir 
a  partir 

J'ai  plaisir  a .  . . . 
or  J'ai  le  plaisir  de 
J*ai  fait  relier. . . . 
Je  lui  ferai 

Je  desire  que  vous  soyes. . 
a  Paris 

au  printemps 
en  dame 
un  feu  de  bois 
de  tout  le  monde 
d'une  voix  calme 

par  Albany 
par  une  telle  tempete 
Je  pense  que  oui 
Attendee  qu'il  vienne. 
//  faudra  encore  reveiiir 
(come  again 


CURRENT 

TWENTIETH  CENTURY 

PHRASES 


216  FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


CURRENT  TWENTIETH  CENTURY  PHRASES 

1.  The  World  War  was  concluded  by  the  Treaty  of  Ver- 

sailles. 

2.  The  final  drive  was  repulsed  with  heavy  loss. 

3.  They  took  cover  as  the  bombing-planes  passed  overhead . 

4.  He  felt  the  chill  of  the  zero  hour. 

5.  At  cockcrow  they  went  over  the  top. 

6.  They  came  face  to  face  in  no  man's  land. 

7.  He  was  mentioned  in  dispatches. 

8.  Shell-shock  put  many  men  out  of  action. 

9.  He  was  gfassed  and  invalided  home. 

10.  He  was  kept  all  week  on  the  firing--line. 

11.  He  was  adored  by  the  rank  and  file. 

12.  He  rose  from  the  ranks  through  sheer  ability. 

13.  He  took  more  chances  than  any  other  flier. 

14.  His  plane  side-slipped  and  went  into  a  nose  dive. 

15.  The  squadron  returned  to  its  base  after  the  air-raid. 

16.  He  became  one  of  the  leading^  allied  aces- 

17.  He  was  killed  while  looping  the  loop. 

18.  The  car  skidded  into  the  ditch. 

19.  They  went  for  a  spin  in  his  high-powered  roadster. 

20.  He  was  delayed  for  an  hour  by  a  blowout. 

21.  His  motor  stalled  as  he  went  into  high. 

22.  He  pleaded  guilty  and  was  fined  for  speeding. 

23.  He  was  suddenly  recalled  by  wireless. 

24.  I  sent  him  a  wire  declining  the  offer. 

25.  She  rang  him  up  but  was  cut  off  while  talking. 

26.  He  was  unable  to  put  through  the  call. 


FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  217 


CURRENT  TWENTIETH  CENTURY  PHRASES 

1.  La  guerre  mondiale  s'est  terminee  par  le  Traite  de  Ver- 

sailles. 

2.  La  poussee  finale  fut  repoussee  avec  de  grosses  pertes. 

3.  lis  se  mirent  a  I'abri  quand  les  avions  de  bombarde- 

ment  arriverent. 

4.  II  sentit  le  frisson  de  I'heure  glaciale. 

5.  Au  chant  du  coq  ils  sauterent  sur  le  billard. 

6.  Ils  se  trouverent  face  a  face  dans  la  zone  neutre. 

7.  II  fut  porte  a  I'ordre  du  jour. 

8.  La    commotion    mqttait   beaucoup   d'hommea  hors   de 

combat. 

9.  II  fut  pris  des  gaz  et  mis  en  conge. 

10.  Toute  la  semaine  on  le  tint  sur  la  ligne  de  feu. 

11.  Les  simples  soldats  I'adoraient. 

12.  II  ne  dut  ses  galons  qu'a  son  intelligence. 

13.  II  s'exposait  plus  qu'aucun  autre  aviateur. 

14.  Son  avion  glissa  sur  I'aile  et  piqua  du  nez. 

15.  Apres  le  raid  I'escadrille  revint  a  sa  base. 

16.  H  devint  I'un  des  premiers  as  allies. 

17.  II  se  tua  en  bouclant  la  boucle. 

18.  L'auto  dierapa  et  tomba  dans  le  fosse- 

19.  Ils  firent  un  tour  dans  sa  puissante  auto  de  tourisme. 

20.  Une  crevaison  le  retarda  d'une  heure. 

21.  Comme  il  montait,  son  moteur  eut  une  panne  momen- 

tanee. 

22.  II  avoua  et  paya  I'amende  pour  exces  de  vitesse. 

23.  II  fut  tout  a  coup^rappele  par  sans-fil. 

24.  Je  lui  envoyai  un  telegramme  pour  refuser  son  off  re. 

25.  Elle  Tappela  a  I'appareil  mais  fut  coupee. 

26.  II  ne  put  obtenir  la  communication. 


218  FRENCH  GRAiAlMAR  MADE  CLEAR 

CURRENT  TWENTIETH  CENTURY  PHRASES   (Continued) 

27.  "Busy"  or  **Don't  Answer"  was  the  invariable  reply. 

28.  He  hung^  up  and  left  the  booth. 

29.  They  foug^ht  for  the  freedom  of  the  seas. 

30.  The  self-determination  of  peoples  was  at  stake- 

31.  They  believed  in  open  covenants  openly  arrived  at.  | 

32.  He  considered  the  League  of  Nations  a  supergovernment. 

33.  The  treaty  embodied  the  famous  fourteen  points. 

34.  The  mandates  were  apportioned  among  the  Great  Powers. 

35.  The  balance  of  power  was  the  keynote  of  the  old  diplo- 

macy. 

36.  The  divine  right  of  kings  passed  into  the  discard. 

37.  A  plebiscite  was  held  to  determine  their  national  prefer- 

ences. 

38.  A  buffer  state  was  su^jg^ested  as  a  safeguard. 

39.  We  cannot  disarm  without  protective  guarantees. 

40.  Reconstruction  in  the   devastated  area  hinged  on   the 

size  of  the  indemnity. 
4L  All  the  world  longs  for  an  agreement  on  disarmament. 

42.  Trade  rivalry  leads  to  an  increased  budget. 

43.  A  high   protective  tariff   apparently   favors  home   in- 

dustries. 

44.  Foreign  exchange  fluctuated  enormously  after  the  arm- 

istice. 

45.  Currency  inflation  had  reached  a  maximum.  ^ 

46.  Many  European  bond  issues  are  ajgood  buy  at  presenlM^^^  *J 

exchange  rates. 

47.  The  balance  of  trade  was  now  in  favor  of  the  United 

States. 


FRENCEI   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  2i9 

CURRENT  TWENTIETH  CENTURY  PHRASES    (Continued) 

27.  ''Pas  libre"  ou  "on  ne  repond  pas"  fut  la  reponse  in 

variable. 

28.  II  raccrocha  les  recepteurs  et  quitta  la  cabine. 

29.  lis  se  battirent  pour  la  liberte  des  mers. 

30.  Le  droit  des  peuples  a  disposer  d'eux-memes  etait  en  jc.. 

31.  lis  croyaient  a  la  diplomatic  ouverte- 

32.  La  Ligue  des  Nations  lui  paraissait  un  sur-gouverne- 

ment. 

33.  Le  Traite  engloba  les  fameux  quatorze  points. 

34.  Les  mandats  f  itrent  partages  entre  les  grandes  puissances. 

35.  L'equilibre  des  puissances  etait  le  mot  d'ordre  de  I'an- 

cienne  diplomatic. 

36.  Le  droit  divin  des  rois  fut  rejete. 

37.  Un  plebiscite  determina  leurs  preferences  nationales. 

38.  Un  etat-tampon  fut  suggere  comme  protection. 

39.  Nous  ne  pouvons  desarmer  sans  garanties. 

40.  La  reconstitution  des  pays  devastes  dependait  du  mon- 

tant  de  Tindemnite- 
4L  Le  monde  entier  souhaite  un  accord  pour  le  desarmement. 

42.  La  rivalite  commerciale  conduit  au  grossissement  des 

budgets. 

43.  Un  fort  tarif  protectionniste  semble  favoriser  les  indus- 

tries du  pays. 

44.  Apres  I'armistice  les  changes  etrangers  varierent  extra- 

ordinairement. 

45.  L'inflation  fiduciaire  avait  atteint  le  maximum. 

A6.  Beaucoup  de  valeurs  Europeennes  sont  un  bon  achat 
avec  le  change  actuel. 

47.  La  balance  commerciale  etait  alors  en  faveur  des  Etats 
Unis- 


220  FRENCH  GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR 


CURRENT  TWENTIETH  CENTURY   PHRASES    (Continued) 

48.  Supremacy    in    world    trade    depends    upon    shipping 

power. 

49.  Many  vessels  are  being  made  over  into  oil-burners. 

50.  Light  cruisers  may  come  to  replace  capital  ships. 

51.  Fast  destroyers  are  needed  for  coast  defence. 

52.  They  employed  smoke-screens  by  way  of  camouflage. 

53.  The  farmers  were  opposed  to  daylight  saving. 

54.  Ragtime  airs  were  all  the  fashion  at  that  time. 

55.  He  was  a  constant  patron  of  the  movies. 

56.  It  was  probably  the  best  photoplay  of  the  season. 

57.  Woman  suffrage  was  everywhere  victorious- 

58.  Prohibition  delighted  the  drys  and  enraged  the  wets. 

59.  Nearly  all  the  unions  voted  to  go  on  strike. 
60-  Many  of  the  workers  advocated  direct  action. 

61.  Capital  and  labor    are    economically    dependent    upon 

each  other. 

62.  He  made  his  appeal  to  the  extreme  radical  wing. 

63.  The  labor  party  was  definitely  in  favor  of  government 

control. 

64.  The  surtax  on  large  incomes  was  especially  heavy. 

65.  The  tax  on  necessaries  increased  the  high  cost  of  living. 

66.  High  prices  brought  about  a  large  reduction  in  sales. 

67.  Unemployment   forced  many  deserving  men  onto  the 

streets. 
68-  Government  works  were  started  as  a  relief  measure. 
69.  Several  ex-kings  sought  domicile  in  Switzerland. 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR   MADE  CLEAR  221 


CURRENT  TWENTIETH  CENTURY   PHRASES    (Continued) 

48.  La  suprematie  dans  le  commerce  mondial  depend  de  la 

marine  marchande. 

49.  On   transforme  beaucoup   de   navires   pour  leur   faire 

briiler  du  petrole. 

50.  Peut-etre  les  croiseurs  legers  remplaceront-ils  les  gros 

cuirasses. 

51.  II  faut  des  torpilleurs  rapides  pour  la  defense  cotiere. 

52.  lis  se  camouflerent  d'un  rideau  de  fumee. 

53.  Les  fermiers  etaient  opposes  a  Theure  d'ete. 

54.  La  musique  syncopee  faisait  rage  alors. 

55.  II  passait  sa  vie  au  cine. 

56.  Ce  fut  probablement  le  meilleur  film  de  la  saison, 

57.  Le  vote  des  fetnmes  s'imposa  partout. 

58.  La  prohibition  charma  les  "Sees"  et  rendit  furieux  les 

"Humides". 

59.  La  plupart  des  syndicats  voterent  la  greve. 

60.  Beaucoup  d'ouvriers  recommandaient  Taction  directe. 

61.  Le  capital  et  le  travail    sont    economiquement    insepa- 

rables. 

62.  II  fit  appel  a  I'extreme  gauche  socialiste. 

63.  Le  Travaillistes  voulaient  nettement  le  monopole  d'Etat. 

64.  La  surtaxe  sur  les  gros  revenus  surtout  parut  lourde. 

65.  La  taxe  sur  les  denrees  courantes  fit  encherir  la  vie. 

66.  Les  prix  eleves  firent  diminuer  la  vente. 

Q.  Le  chomage  mit  sur  le  pave  quantite  de  braves  ouvriers- 

68.  On  ouvrit  des  ateliers  nationaux  par  mesure  de  secours. 

69.  Plusieurs  rois  detrones  se  fixerent  en  Suisse. 


APPENDICES 


APPENDIX  IV 

Measures,  Weights,  Coins 

Measures  —  The  decimal  system  was  invented  in  France  and 
French  measures  and  weights  are  naturally  based 
upon  it. 

The  standard  is  the  metre  (3  ft.  3  inches),  or  one 
ten  milHonth  of  the  circumference  of  the  earth.  It  is 
subdivided  into  100  centimetres,  themselves  each  sub- 
divided into  10  millimetres. 


10 

metres 

— 

1  decametre 

100 

<( 

= 

1  hectometre 

000 

" 

r=, 

.  1  kilometre  ' 

Square  measures — 1  square  metre  =  metre  carre 
100        "  "       =  are 

10,000        "  "       =  hectare 

Roughly  counting;  5  acres  ■=■  2  hectares 

Cubic  measures — 100  cubic  centimetres  =  decilitre 

1000  "  "  =  litre    (quart) 

1000  litres  =     metre  cube  or  stcre 

Weights    —  1  cubic  centimetre  of  distilled  water=l  gramme 

100  grammes  =  hectogramme 
500  "  =  half-kilo  or  pound 

1,000         "  =  kilogramme  or  kilo 

1,000      kilos       =  ton 

Coins.. —        The  monetary  unit  is  the  franc  =  100  centimes. 

Normally  the   franc  =   19  cents,   American  money. 
The  sou  =  5  centimes. 
The  gros  sou  =  10  centimes. 
The  half  franc  =  50  centimes. 

There  used  to  be  silver  coins  worth  1  fr.,  2  frs., 
and  5  frs.  and  gold  coins  worth  10  frs.  and  20  frs., 
but  since  the  war  paper  or  aluminum  have  been  sub- 
stituted for  them. 


APPENDIX  V 

Polite  Formulas  -  Letter  Writing 

The  French  use  the  words  Monsieur  (to  men),  Ma- 
dame  (to  married  women),  and  Mademoiselle  (to 
unmarried  women)  more  freely  than  is  done  with 
the  corresponding  terms  in  English.  For  instance  the 
tenants  of  a  house  call  the  concierge  (janitor)  and  his 
wife  Monsieur  and  Madame;  the  clientele  of  restau- 
rants where  women  are  employed  call  the  waitress 
Mademoiselle.  Monsieur  voire  pere,  Mademoiselle  vo- 
ire aile.  Monsieur  le  Docteur,  are  often  used  where 
we  simply  say  "your  father",  "your  daughter",  "Doc- 
tor." 

The  French  say  ma  femme,  mon  mari,  never  Madame 
or  Monsieur  So  and  so. 

It  is  not  good  form  in  French  to  add  the  family 
name  to  Monsieur,  Madame,  or  Mademoiselle  in  ad- 
dressing people  unless  one  has  to  do  so  in  order  to 
attract  their  attention. 

Titles  are  not  added  in  speaking  to  titled  women, 
except  princessess,  who  can  be  called  "princesse"  or 
Madame ;  also,  they  are  not  generally  added  in  speak- 
ing to  titled  men,  who  are  simply  called  Monsieur  except 
by  their  inferiors.  However,  a  duke  is  addressed  as 
Monsieur  le  Due  and  a  prince  as  "Prince."  Priests 
are  called  Monsieur  I'Ahhe,  Bishops  are  called  Mon- 
seigneur,  nuns  are  called  ma  chore  sceur  or  ma  sceur. 
Officers  can  be  called  Monsieur  without  any  offence 
when  one  does  not  know  their  rank.  When  one 
knows  army  men  well  it  is  customary  to  address 
them  as  capitaine,  colonel,  general,  etc.,  although  their 
subordinates  say,  mon  capitaine.  mon  colonel,  etc. 

* 
*    * 

Letter-writing  is,   generally    speaking,   more    formal 

in  French  than  in  English. 

Full  titles  are  used  on  superscriptions: 

Monsieur   le   Docteur   Recamier 
Monsieur   le   Marquis   d'Argentan 
Monsieur  le  General  de  Castelnau, 


FRENCH   GRAMMAR  MADE  CLEAR  239 


Professors  do  not  like  being  called  Monsieur  le 
Professeur,  which  sounds  German:  they  are  called 
Monsieur.  However,  professors  of  medicine  are  often 
called  Professeur  So  and  So  or  cher  maitre  in 
conversation. 

There  is  no  coldness  in  beginning  letters  with  just 
Monsieur  or  Madame,  and  it  requires  intimacy  to  say 
chere  Madame. 

The  following  will  be  safely  used  in  signing  one's 
self. 

To  people  one  regards  as  one's  superiors: 
Veuillez  croire,  Monsieur  or  Madame,   a  mon  pro- 
fond  respect,  or  a  mes  sentiments  respectueux,  or, 
with  a  nuance  of  affection,  a  mes  sentiments  respec- 
tueux et  devoues. 

To  one's  equals:  Croyez,  Monsieur,  a  ma  considera- 
tion distinguee,  or  Receves,  Monsieur,  I'assurance 
de  mes  meilleurs  sentiments. 

To  friends :  Bien  a  vous,  affectueusement  a  vous, 
cordialement  a  vous. 

Letters  to  inferiors  are  often  written  in  the  thircj 
person,  ex. :  M.  Lebrun  prie  M.  Durand  de  lui  ren- 
voyer  les  papier s  qu'il  a  laisses  lundi. 
To  officials,  etc..  whose  position  is  not  known  to  be 
exceptionally  high,  a  convenient  formula  is :  Receve^:, 
Monsieur,  mes  civilites.  This  form  is  also  used  in 
business  letters. 


APPENDIX  VI 

Advice 

In  translating  from  English  into  French: 

Do  not  write  a  single  word  in  your  copy-book  before 
reading  and  re-reading  the  English  text  till  you 
are  sure  of  the  meaning  of  every  word. 
Do  not  write  a  single  word  before  having  transla- 
ted mentally  the  whole  passage,  referring  to  the 
dictionary  only  when  you  are  sure  that  the  French 
word   is   wnknown   to   you. 

Read  the  dictionary  carefully,  not  confining  yourself 
to   the    line    or   two   which    seem   likely   to   help   in 
"making  sense",  but  reading  the  whole  article. 
Write  legibly,  leaving  plenty  of  space  between  your 
lines  for  neat  corrections. 
Re-read. 

In  translating  from  French  into  English: 

Read  and  re-read  five  or  six  times  before  even  con- 
sulting the  dictionary. 

Do  not  write  a  single  word  before  feeling  ready  to 
translate  viva  voce  correctly  and  even  elegantly. 
Avoid  literalness  when  it  is  barbarous.  Do  not 
translate  {/  fut  mis  au  pied  du  mur  by  "he  was 
pushed  to  the  foot  of  the  wall",  but  by  "he  was 
driven  into  a  corner",  which  is  the  corresponding 
idiom. 

Always  think  of  harmony,  especially  when  you  trans- 
late poetry. 

In  composing  essays: 

Do  not  write  one  line,  save  notes,  before  having 
thought  out  the  subject  so  carefully  that  you  coiilcl 
treat  it  viva  voce.  When  this  has  been  done,  write 
your  whole  essay  at  a  stretch,  leaving  blank  or  in 
English  the  words  you  would  have  to  look  up.  Con- 
sult the  dictionary  only  when  your  first  draft  is  com- 
plete. 

To  sum  up,  never  write  anything  about  which  men- 
tal preparation  has  not  made  you  sure.  This  will 
not  only  teach  you  the  art  of  writing  coherently  and 
correctly,  it  will  teach  you  foresight  in  planning  and 
conscienciousness  in  seeking  after  truth. 


APPENDIX  VII 

Bibliography 

The  first  step  in  the  study  of  any  subject  consists  in 
obtaining  information  concerning  the  best  books 
treating  of  that  subject.  The  list  of  those  books  is 
called  the  bibliography  of  the  subject.  The  French 
bibliography  given  hereafter  is  limited  to  the  most 
accessible  works  written  in  English. 

French  Geography: 

Blanchard  and  Millicent  Todd :  Geography  of  Francs 
(Chicago,   Rand,  McNally  and  Co.,  1919). 

History  of  France: 

W.  S.  Davis:  Histoy  of  France,  from  the  Earliest 
Times  to  the  Treaty  of  Versailles  (Boston,  Hough- 
ton, Mifflin  &  Co.,  1919). 

E.  Bourgeois:  Modern  France  (1815-1913),  (Cam- 
bridge University  Press,  1919). 

Constitution  of  France: 

E.   M.  Sait:    Government  and  Politics  of  France. 
(New  York,  World  Book  Co.,  1920) 

The  People  of  France: 

Edith  Wharton:  French  Ways  and  Their  Meaning. 

(New  York,  Appleton,  1919). 

Laurence    Jerrold :     France,    Her    People  and  Her 

Spirit,    (Indianapolis,  Bobbs-Merrill  Co.,  1916). 

French  Literature: 

C.   H.  C.  Wright:    A  History  of  French  Literature. 

(Oxford  University  Press,  1912). 
G.   L.    Strachey:    Landmarks  in  French   Literature. 

(New  York,  Holt).  ' 
Ch.    M.   des    Granges:    An    Illustrated    History    of 

French  Literature.     Translated  by  Louise  Morgan 

Sill.  (Paris,  Hatier,  1922). 


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